Raven's Howl
by twistedpremise
Summary: Raven's communicator is broken during a fight, so she calls Changeling for backup another way. What happens when something gets added-or discovered- in translation? BB/Rae, mild Rob/Star. Rated M because it deserves it. (Note: I'm removing the "no lemon" qualifier. Make of that what you will.)
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I finally came back to fix the glaring errors of this chapter (mostly spelling/grammar, though a few continuity things). I'll eventually get around to revising the next few chapters retro-actively, since it's clear that my writing only improved over time (and that I started paying much more attention in the proof-reading process later on), but this chapter was so bad I couldn't leave it any longer.

Oh, and I had to add the disclaimer: My name is TwistedPremise, and I write fanfiction about things over which I hold no ownership... namely the Teen Titans.

Enjoy.

* * *

It started out as a simple patrol.

Beast Boy and Raven were each patrolling opposite ends of town, maintaining a public presence that reminded everyone- civilian or villain- that the Titans were watching over Jump City. They'd long since ceased patrolling in pairs, their communicators and individual developments made communication and self-defense more than sufficient to keep themselves safe until backup arrived, if backup was even necessary. It had been four years since defeating the brotherhood of evil in Paris, and The Titans (Teen no longer applying to any of the founding members) had grown.

Well, most of them had, at least. Raven was now the shortest on the team, much to Beast B- sorry, Changeling's good humor. Of course, she still threw him into the bay on occasion, mostly to remind him that she still could, but they'd mostly settled into a comfortable antagonism that consisted of him pestering her to stretch her comfort zone, her dry humor at his expense (which he took with good, if sometimes pouty, humor), and her eye-rolling tolerance of his light flirtatiousness. If it were anyone but Changeling it would probably come across as annoying, but his lighthearted nature (and her quick one-liners) ensured that it was simply, as he put it, "part of his charm."

Cyborg hadn't changed much, mostly just technological advances. Recent military and cellular advancements equipped him with greater range, firepower, and a jump literally capable of entering a skyscraper on the 80th floor, but his personality never wavered from the big-brother to all, boss-to-none enthusiasm. He'd lost his trademark "booyah," in public when the internet decided it belonged in the 80's and made a meme of photoshopped pictures of him with an afro and disco pants, but he would still use the phrase every now and then among Titans.

Robi- sorry again, Nightwing and Starfire were the ultimate yo-yo of a relationship. Had Nightwing been the type to spend their rough periods in a bar they'd have graced TMZ with more material than even the Titan's fanbase could stomach, but considering the start, middle, and end to all their drama took place in the either evidence room or Nightwing's office, the public remained blissfully unaware of it all.

With his new persona, Nightwing had also grown to just over 6', and maintained the physique of an acrobat. Even Changeling sported more muscle mass, though he was still on the slender side of the spectrum. He'd gotten comparisons to an MMA fighter before, middle-class or lighter. Cyborg, made up for them both, looking for all the world like a Champion Heavyweight Boxer when he used the Holo-rings to disguise his cybernetic parts.

The Girls had changed physically, as well. Starfire opted for purple shorts instead of her younger mini-skirts (possibly robin's influence, since she still seemed naïve enough not to have noticed the amateur photographers hoping for an upskirt shot), and her crop-top was filled out in a way that made Robin the envy of many, many men. She stood at 5'11" in heels and/or her platform boots, and her favorite thing to do was enjoy the "perfection of height differences" between her and Robin by going dancing.

Raven snorted with the thought. "As though height matters all that much when you're grinding."

So distracted was Raven by her reflections that she missed the shot of electricity launched from the roof of a media building until it seared her side, knocking her out of flight onto a gravel rooftop.

Raven groaned, checking for vital damage. Finding none, she reached for her communicator. _That's either Overload, or someone just as strong. Better call for backup. _

"_Shit"_ she thought, as her communicator had been destroyed by the blast. She weighed her options: fight, run, or defend until help arrived. Screams from the street made her mind up for her.

Rising from the rooftop, she surveyed the scene. It was indeed overload, targeting a small concert in the park. "_He must have_ _been attracted by the electric lights and speakers,"_ she reasoned, and prepared to engage the energy being. Before she could engage, however, Overload seemed to direct his (its?) attention to a young girl and her mother, most likely attracted to the concert from the nearby playground.

Without thinking, Raven phased in front of the two bystanders and raised a shield of obsidian energy. Not a moment later, a powerful and sustained bolt of energy danced across the dome, intent on frying the three protected women. Raven grunted and focused intently on the shield.

Overload had learned from his past defeat at Raven's hands, and gave her not a moment to rest or direct her attentions on the offensive. The energy spike danced across the protective bubble, fast, thin, and wickedly strong, forcing Raven to rapidly fluctuate the strength of her barrier to prevent weakening in one place.

_I need backup_, she thought, _I can't risk dropping my defenses to attack him, and this park doesn't have any large fountains or sprinklers to use against him if I did. Without my communicator, there's no way to reach the tower. I have to contact Changeling… _

Searching for a solution, Raven's mind flashed back to a conversation she'd had with the green young man a few weeks prior, when Changeling had taken to engaging Raven in little trivia games, particularly when she attempted meditating in the common room.

"Hey Raven," the resident shape-changer called out from his place on the couch. "You know how wolves howl at the moon, right?"

He continued without getting a response "Actually, that's a common misconception. We actually howl to gather the pack for a hunt, normally."

He'd also taken to talking about animals he formed frequently in first-person. She wasn't sure what to think about that.

"It's actually a lot like Robin's whole 'Titan's GO' thing, really. And that makes us a pack! Nightwing's the alpha, the bad guys are the prey, and our communicators are like the wolf call! They've even got a similar range, about 10 miles, without cell service!"

"Fascinating." Raven deadpanned, and returned to her mantra…. "Azerath Metrion Zinthos….

Okay, maybe "conversation" was too strong of a word. Nonetheless, it brought up a possible solution out of her predicament.

Diverting as little attention away from her current task as she could, Raven invoked one of her simpler spells: "Vocalon Endium Desheeray!"

At first, nothing happened, and Raven prepared to try another, more complicated version. Before she could, though, the howl of a majestic, proud grey wolf echoed through the park, calling- _demanding_\- the presence of its pack.

Overload paused, then redoubled his efforts to penetrate the dark shell protecting Raven and the two women. _Azar, I hope that worked. _Raven thought, as she focused everything she had to blocking that erratic lightning pounding away at her defenses.

Just as she felt her energy reserves begin to drain, however, she heard the howl again: deeper this time, and growing stronger. Out of a grove of trees came great Wolf, easily five feet at the shoulder, with fangs bared and barreling toward Overload. A green blur in the open field, it-no, HE- covered half the distance before Overload redirected his attentions away from the girls.

Raven released the protective dome and collapsed, maintaining only enough energy to watch as Overload fired bolt after bolt at the grey wolf, none able to match the wolf's agility as Changeling closed the distance between them.

The wolf leaped and shifted just before making contact-taking the form of a large pacific ray, one of the many members of the Ray family which use electricity to hunt. Though Overload was a being of energy and silicon, it had largely exhausted itself with its sustained assault on Raven, and Changeling's rapid transformations between electric eels and rays eventually drained it of its embodied energy.

Changeling finally reverted back to human form.

"Friend Changeling! Friend Raven!" Starfire called out, coming in hot from a clearly panicked flight. "Are you unharmed?" Raven saw the T-car pull up moments later.

"Yeah Star, we're good," Changeling wheezed, offering a weak thumbs-up from his position on his hands and knees.

"Yo, what happened here?" Cyborg had his arm cannon charged as he ran to the field.

"Overload," Raven deadpanned, holding up his master chip by way of explanation.

"And he did this to you two?" Cyborg was flabbergasted.

"Yeah, he just came from that giant HD-TV display on main street, I passed in on the way here" Changeling offered, patting down his singed hair, which was still smoking at its points.

"Factor in the absence of water, and that he got the first hit while I was distracted, and you've got the whole picture," Raven finished, rising to her feet.

"I'm sorry guys, we came as soon as you called, Changeling" Nightwing completed. He glanced quickly between them, putting pieces together and finding some information missing. "If Raven's communicator was destroyed without a distress call, how did you know she needed help, anyway?"

Of course Nightwing noticed the communicator dust on her hip. "I called him" Raven supplied. "I remembered him telling me that some animals, particularly wolves, can communicate long distances. So I used a simple charm to produce a wolf howl, hoping he would get the message and find me. Clearly he did."

Changeling surprised her by blushing and looking away. "Yeah, uh, about that. You probably don't want to use that one again, if you can help it. Or maybe just practice your Wolf or something…"

Raven raised an eyebrow. "And why is that? It worked, didn't it?"

"Well, yeah," Changeling seemed to look anywhere but at Raven. "But you didn't use a hunting call…"

"I do not understand," interjected Starfire. "Earth Wolves have different howls for different occasions? If not the call of hunting or distress, what howl did friend Raven use?"

"Um, well, it's kinda embarrassing…" Changeling muttered.

Raven however, was getting frustrated. Maybe it was Overload, maybe it was Changeling's accidental dismissal of her possibly life-saving solution, all she knew was she got sarcastic. "No, Garfield, please, tell us _exactly_ what it was about my howl that was so wrong. I wouldn't want to _embarrass _you again. "

"No, it's not that," Changeling was almost pleading, looking for an escape…

"Then what was it?"

"IT WAS A MATING CALL, OKAY?" Changeling blurted out, shifting into a turtle in preparation for an obsidian-energy punting into the bay.

Except it didn't happen.

Raven just stood there, frozen, as her friends processed the idea.

"Friend Raven… propositioned… friend Changeling?" Starfire queried.

"No Star," Nightwing tried to clarify, "it's more like, well… yes, but, it was an accident."

With that, Raven seemed to shake herself out of her stupor. "Of course." She clarified. "My spell manifested a re-creation of what I understood a wolf call to sound like. The only time I've heard a wolf was national geographic, so that must have been what my subconscious manifested when emulating a wolf call."

She blinked twice, and looked at the green turtle, who was reluctantly daring to stick his head out of his shell. "Thank you for responding regardless, and for your help with Overload. Also, thank you for contacting the others; that was a good move, given the circumstances."

Changeling shifted back to his human form, still sitting on the ground as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, well, uh, you're welcome. Sorry about the wolf mix-up thing, I know you don't speak wolf." He visibly brightened with an idea. "Oh, next time there's a full moon out, I'll do a real wolf hunting call, that way if you ever need to do that spell-thingy again, you'll have the right howl to base it off of!"

Raven only nodded in response, her mind elsewhere.

"Well, Rae's gonna need some time to recover from that electricity burn, and BB just took a live wire to the head, so I'm gonna drive these two back to the tower," Cyborg announced.

"Good Idea Cyborg," Nightwing agreed. "Star and I will cover the rest of their patrol. We'll see you in a couple hours."

As soon as the on-again-off-again couple (who were currently on) were out of earshot, Cyborg and Changeling started betting how far into the patrol route they'd get before they stopped to make out. Raven interrupted with "I'll see you both at the tower, I need to meditate" and phased away.

The boys just shrugged, and went back to debating how long it would take before some lucky paparazzi got a picture of Nightwing and Starfire in a compromising position.

* * *

Meanwhile, Raven emerged from a black pool into the shadows of her bedroom, reaching immediately for her Nevermore mirror.

"Now," she whispered, "let's figure out how a spell for summoning something of need or desire inadvertently turns into a booty-call."


	2. The Nevermore Chapter

Xbakiyalo- Hey, I remember you! Thanks for the feedback, I hope I didn't stretch Raven a bit too far for your distinctly Canon tastes with this chapter. My goal was to keep her the same, just more thought-out and with a few years' growth. Look for a humor story next, I've got an idea for a real gut-buster. Oh, n I 'll get right back on The Slade Contract soon, I promise!

Sharpclaws- Thanks, I wasn't sure if this was going to be a one-shot or not, especially since I was intimidated by the idea of a Nevermore chapter, but I hope I did it justice in your eyes.

Annatheavidreader- So, a little less (read, no) action in this one, sorry, just a lot of my favorite witty banter, but if you're looking for comedy &amp; romance, you'll love what I have planned for Chapter 3. Also, thanks for the bit about wolves &amp; ravens, I might be able to work with that here in a chapter or two.

Author's Note: Hey Guys, if you're a fan of my writing style, I'd love it it you were to swing on over to my other story, The Slade Contract, where I explore Slade and his motivations. I know, most of us don't really care for Slade-centric stories, normally I don't either, but I promise this is worth your time. Give it a shot, n if you don't like the first chapter you can let me know in the reviews and I'll shift my focus on the one with more fan-base. Now back to the BB-RAE!

The defeat of Trigon, and several years development and experience as both a hero and a person had done wonders for Raven. She still meditated, of course, but it had long since ceased being a desperate plug-the-cracks-in-dam exercise, and instead served to do what meditation was designed for: sharpen focus, reveal and resolve inner turmoil, and achieve a calm, balanced state of mind.

At least, as calm and balanced as can be achieved by an empath living in close quarters to Changeling and Starfire.

The changes were subtle, but her friends noticed. She joked more often, snorted off Changeling's antics rather than getting upset, did more with the Titans, and had less frequent outburst of energy when her emotions spiked. Her personality never changed, of course, but her team wouldn't have it any other way.

Time had been good to Raven, and it showed in Nevermore. The rigidly defined "territories" of her aspects began sharing borders, and even overlapping on occasion. As Raven experienced more, the simplicity of rigid emoticlones began to blur, and while yes, there were still little people living in her head, Raven found each of them to have more than a single facet. This made sense, of course. Nobody experiences only a fixed set of emotions; there are many spectrums of feeling, most composed of other, more basic emotions. Thus, there were six core emotions in permanent physical form in Raven's mind, plus Reason, Apathy, and Empathy (which are not technically emotions, and why Raven considered her Doppelgangers to be "Aspects.") The emoticlones were Anger (formerly known as Rage under her Father's influence), Fear, Bravery, Affection, Joy, and Sadness. Raven had occasionally encountered others, manifestations of other emotions generated by the convergence of two or even three "core emotions". Once, Raven had spent an hour conversing with Amusement, the product of joy and affection.

But Raven wasn't here looking for emotions, she was here for answers….

A Yellow Raven with glasses poured two cups of tea, settling into an armchair in a library that would have made Alexander the Great weep for joy.

The doors to the library slammed open so hard she could feel it.

"How?" The blue cloaked Titan demanded, marching toward the embodiment of knowledge.

"How to you too," Reason quipped, raising a palm in the pseudo-Native American greeting.

A vein pulsed in Raven's forehead. "Not what I meant. How did that happen? That was a simple spell, Vocalon Endium Desheerey. Translated: Vocalize End Desire." She paused for breath. "I wanted a call for help, not to…"

"Proposition a sexual favor?"

"Yes!... Wait, No!... You know what I mean" Raven finished lamely, flopping down in the empty armchair to face her counterpart.

"Indeed I do, but I'm afraid my answers are not going to be to your liking…" Reason offered the second cup of tea.

"What do you mean?" Raven sounded nervous as she accepted the cup.

"Well, we know that the spell itself was spoken correctly. There were no mistakes with grammer, phonetic pronunciation, or the energy called upon to cast it." Reason held out three fingers. "There are only three things which can significantly alter the results of a spell that simple. One, the casting of the spell." She folded a finger down. "We know there was no problem there."

Raven nodded, warily.

"Two, the conscious mind when casting the spell." Reason pulled out a remote, activating a projector which began playing an out-of-body perspective of Raven during the fight with Overload. "If we fast forward to the moment of summoning the activation energy, what was on your mind?"

"Call for help" Raven responded immediately.

"Let's double-check that, just to be sure" Reason stated diplomatically. She froze the video on the word 'Deshereey' and pressed a button. Speakers resting behind the bookcases echoed in Raven's voice, "Call Changeling."

"Hmm, minor discrepancy there, could leave some room for interpretation" Reason mused, as Raven went still. "A completely understandable thought, at the time. The Tower was across the city and over the bay, Garfield was our nearest source of assistance, as well as the only person who could interpret a wolf howl as a summons." Reason supplied herself with another refill before continuing.

"Now, the final thing which can shape a spell of such vague nature would be the subconscious will, namely Us," Reason spread her hands to indicate the entirety of Nevermore. "The word Desire can have many interpretations, and while Assistance was certainly the one your conscious mind intended, it is possible that another Aspect of your inner self influenced the charm." Reason stopped to sip her tea, and awaited Raven's response.

The teacup nearly cracked in two as Raven set it on the table, but she barely seemed to take notice. "Who?" she demanded. "Was it Anger, trying to set up a fight? Empathy, picking up on nearby sexual energy?"

"To be honest, I don't _know_," Reason supplied. "As much as I represent knowledge, I am limited by your own memory and knowledge sources." She paused for effect, enjoying the tease. "Now, as the representation of reason and rational deduction, I could make a guess or two…"

"Then guess."

"But to be honest, you've overlooked the obvious to quickly, it makes me wonder if you really want me to" Reason finished, reaching behind her for a leather-bound book.

She didn't get there before her wrist was covered in black energy.

"What… exactly… is that supposed to mean?" Raven's voice got cold.

"Well, why do most people engage in sex?" Reason put it bluntly.

The shock dispersed the black energy. "Hormones." Raven deadpanned.

Reason mimicked a buzzer. "Wrong. For most people, sex is about Affection."

The thought of her purple-clad emoticlone caused Raven's eyes to glaze as she processed Reason's assertion. "Not possible," she finally spoke. "I've never felt anything of that… nature, towards Garfield."

"No?" Reason feigned disinterest behind her book. "Then maybe I'm wrong. Still though, if you wanna talk to her before you leave, I'd suggest you head over. If his pattern holds, Garfield's going to be knocking on your door to check in soon."

Satisfied that the conversation had reached it's end, Raven stood, walking back towards the still adjacent door.

"Oh, and Raven?" Reason called. "You never actually apologized to the poor guy for your attitude after Overload. He WAS just trying not to embarrass you, after all."

Raven blushed as she recalled her behavior before the "mating call" revelation. She nodded, and slipped out, unsure where to go next.

Wandering through the mindscape, Raven pondered her conversation with Reason. Despite the ridiculous speculation as to affection's involvement or lack thereof, the fact remained that only a subconscious Aspect could have molded the spell in that way.

So distracted was Raven with this puzzle that she didn't notice where she was until it was too late.

"Raven!" a violet blur wrapped Raven in a bear hug, picking her up off the ground and spinning. "You NEVER come to visit! I should go grab happy, she'll want to see you too!"

"Ach, Affection, put me down" Raven squirmed. "Azar, you're almost as bad as Happy these days."

"Oops, sorry," Affection seemed politely chagrined as she returned Raven to solid ground. "So, what brings you by?"

Raven brushed herself off. _Well, might as well settle the matter while I'm here_, she mused. "Actually, Affection, I wanted to talk to you."

"Oh?" Affection brightened. It seems any form of interaction made the violet girl's day. "What's up?"

"My powers malfunctioned during the… incident… with Overload. Somehow, what was intended to be a simple call for backup turned into something… else." Raven narrowed her gaze on her emoticlone. "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

"Malfunctioned? You mean like, explosion-malfunction?" Affection ignored the question.

"Not quite." Raven struggled to find the words. "Apparently, my summons involved an invitation I hadn't intended to send." Affection still looked confused. "A sexual invitation."

At this, Affection's eyes twinkled, something Raven really hadn't wanted to see.

Her response, however, was even more surprising. "And that wasn't you?"

"What, NO!" Raven defended. "I've never felt anything of that… nature…"

"Aqualad." Affection countered.

"THAT WAS A CRUSH!" Raven's voice betrayed panic. She took a deep breath to center herself. "That was a passing crush, nothing serious. And certainly nothing…"

"Malchior."

"BY AZAR IF YOU BRING THAT UP AGAIN I WILL…"

"Okay, okay, I got it!" Affection placated, trying not to grin. "But still, my point is made. You're not asexual Raven, you're still a human girl. Worse, you're part demon, and we both know THEY like sex." She paused. "You shouldn't be embarrassed by wanting sex, especially with…"

"Let's get one thing straight" Raven interrupted. "I did not, and do not, want to have any form of **intimate** relations with Changeling." Raven paused to breathe. "I came here to see if you affected the spell in any way without my knowledge, but it's obvious you didn't."

Raven turned to leave.

"Oh, but what if I did?" Affection teased from behind her. "What if, deep down, you actually aren't as annoyed by his attentions as you act?" Raven paused, and Affection grinned in earnest. "What if, you actually **like** them? What if you don't mind the way he knocks on our door for dinner every day, or hovers just a little bit closer than necessary during combat? What if I took advantage of the way his gaze rests just a **little** too long when you're stretching, or the way yours lingers when he spars with Nightwing?"

"Stop it," Raven muttered, shaking her head.

Affection continued, her voice taking a new, sultry tone. "What if you'd like to know more, huh? I know I would. I'm not just friendly or sisterly affection you know, I feel all the urges you do. After all, you're 22, he's 21, maybe you just invite him in after meditation one evening for a cup of tea? He's so sweet, he'd probably be worried about you, wouldn't even recognize it as an invitation. Maybe you'd have to howl for him again, see where it goes…"

"I said STOP!" Raven whirled back to her purple counterpart. "Changeling is a good friend and valuable ally. I will not have you suggesting anything otherwise." And then the implication of what Affection revealed with her innuendo hit her. "I never said anything about howling… It WAS you!"

"Took you long enough."

"All right, let's get one thing straight between us. I am not, have never been, and never will be sexually interested in Garfield."

"Okay, okay." Affection seemed satisfied with her teasing. "There's nothing there, got it. Back to repression mode, wonderful. And here I thought we passed that with the Wicked Scary Incident."

Raven's teeth were grinding. "I am not repressing anything."

"Well then, you won't mind one little test, will you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"One little thing, nothing major really," Affection drawled. "Just… give him a hug."

Raven poker face revealed her complete lack of engagement with the idea. "What?"

"Just give the poor guy a hug. He certainly earned it, after saving our lives as well as the lives of the two civilians behind us. Plus, you kinda blew up on him with the whole "howling" thing, and he was just trying to be considerate…"

Raven turned to leave.

"Just think about it. One hug, and if you don't get a least a little tingly, I'll shut up for good," Affection promised.

_Too easy_. Raven considered it. _There's nothing there, she's bluffing. I'll just give him a quick hug for… apology, and this whole ordeal will be over with. _

"Deal," Raven nodded, and pulled the mirror from her pocket to return to the Tower.

The last thing she heard was Affection's happy farewell: "Talk to you soon, Raven."


	3. A simple hug (fixed)

Creatorx33: Thanks, let me know if that changes, but I hope this one doesn't disappoint.

Missafrolatina: I'll take that bet, lol. Also, happy to see somebody liked my "punch line" for chapter one, I thought it was hilarious, myself.

JOHNXgambit: I checked it out, but I have trouble following Nevermore stories that seem to pile emoticlone characters on top of each other like that. I prefer a defined number of players and an overarching logic, myself, hence the "six emotions (each with an opposite), plus reason (who's absence is the definition of irrationality, plus Empathy and Apathy.

iamking: Thanks, if you've got anything particular that you'd like me to emulate with my next chapters, let me know!

gwb620: Thanks, I always feel like I end well, I just never know if the stories are going anywhere enough, you know? This is mostly a developmental chapter, but we get two brief glimpses into Changeling's perspective, so that should flesh it out a bit more, as well.

Annatheavidreader: Thanks for the full response, always nice to hear that someone else has my same issue with Nevermore fanfic. Here's what I promised, though I kinda skirted around the "good stuff" to keep up the allure.

Xbakiyalo: You are awesome, sorry I've kept you waiting on three stories now. Hope this chapter is worth the wait!

Sharpclaws: Thanks for the encouragement, I love devious characters myself, so Affection was fun to write. I think all Raven's emotions should be at least a little devious, she is part demonic, anyway...

Darkwarrior1010: You missing our dear LamontCranston as much as I am? Lol, I appreciate the writing tips, too, I totally get where you're coming from with the "telling" vs "showing" thing, I'll try to keep it in mind. Ch. 1 was especially bad about it since I tried to set the stage quickly, too.

LiumD: I know, right? Done right, the Emoticlones are possibly the best exposition/plot device a writer could have for this show, or nearly any show, for that matter.

Kaarlinaa: I know, I just couldn't stay away myself! Sorry about the delay, I got super busy with work.

A/N: Sorry about the delay guys, I can't believe I let time slip away from me like this. Also, since I forgot to do this for previous chapters/works, here's my disclamer: I am TwistedPremise, and I own no characters, storylines, or copyrighted material even remotely related to Teen Titans. I'd say I own these premises, but even that wouldn't be true, most of them have been done before in a thousand different ways. That all being said, please enjoy!

* * *

Raven emerged from her mirror into her bedroom, reeling from her discussions with Reason and Affection. Trips to Nevermore had been getting less frequent, and less necessary, since her father's demonic influence had been conquered because the hyper-exposure to highly-concentrated individual emotions tended to briefly throw off her balance. _Nothing some traditional meditation shouldn't fix._ Raven mused, and settled into her traditional lotus position over the foot of her bed. _Though Reason's right… If the pattern holds, I should have…_ she checked the clock on her nightstand… _between ten and 15 minutes before Changeling shows up…. _

Chanting her mantra, Raven closed her eyes and focused on emptying her mind of conscious thought and reflected on the essence of her inner turmoil. Surprisingly, the calm, even state that normally only took a few minutes to reach eluded her. Brow furrowing, Raven pressed harder, attempting to quell her emotional imbalance through willpower, but it that didn't work either. _This is odd, _ Raven mused, _there's nothing particularly powerful or dramatic going on right now, now overwhelming emotions, why can't I settle down? _Nevertheless she continued chanting, letting her mind wander over her recent conversations. _Reason and Affection are right, _ she mused, _Garfield was only trying to avoid embarrassing me, and I snapped at him. He saved not only me, but the civilians I was protecting, a mother and her young daughter. I owe him an apology…_

A knock echoed at her door. _That time already? _ She looked at her clock in surprise. _Wait, he's five minutes behind "schedule," how did 20 minutes go by? _

She lowered herself down and walked to the door, stretching her empathic sense to check on her guest's emotional state. _Pretty much par for the course, _she thought. _Some confusion, a little nervousness, but mostly concern. _The combination was reassuringly familiar, and made her feel both a little guilty and oddly comfortable. _He thinks this is a standard apology to me, but really, I need to apologize to him. _

She took a breath, ensured her standard "stoic" look was in place, and buzzed the door open. Changeling had his hand raised to knock again, and in his other hand was… a cup of tea?

"Hey, Rae," he offered the still-steaming mug with an overly wide grin. _A peace offering? _ Raven almost smiled, _he's learned a thing or two over the years. Explains why he took longer than usual. _Her good humor faded though, as she accepted the cup and remembered that it wasn't Changeling who ought to be offering the apology. She took a sip of the licorice brew, her preferred tea after a draining battle.

"Thank you, Changeling, but you didn't need to do this."

"Well, I mean, I kinda embarrassed you back there, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that in front of the team like that…" Changeling had lost his habit of babbling like a complete idiot when flustered over the years, but he still stammered through most every apology. _It's actually kind of… endearing, _Raven thought idly, _easy to tell it's sincere. _

"Garfield," she cut him off, setting the tea on a bookshelf by her door. His name ensured she had his attention, and as a result, she looked straight into his eyes as she continued. "Thank you, but the apology, and the tea, are unnecessary. I should actually be apologizing to you. You not only defeated Overload and protected me that way, but then attempted to provide me the discretion of informing me of my mistake with the summoning spell." She broke eye contact to look down at her tea.

"The fact of the matter is this: my temper pushed you into revealing the mistake, despite your attempts to avoid embarrassing me. I apologize for embarrassing you, and myself, with my behavior."

Changeling was obviously surprised at her response, but his relief won out. "It's all good" His reassurance featured a grin to match the relief he was exuding. "You were wiped from fighting Overload, that'll put anyone in a rough mood." He paused, and seemed to remember something. "Hey, by the way, don't you need to get that burn checked out? I'll get Cy to the infirmary, we'll put some aloe or something on it, don't wanna risk infection or something…" He turned to hunt down his metal friend.

Raven surprised them both by grabbing his wrist. "That's really not necessary, and you know it. I'll heal myself just fine, I just need to meditate."

"Oh yeah, right." Changeling started turning back. "Still though, Cy will want to make sure…"

* * *

All in all, this was one of his better apologies. He'd brought tea, gotten his apology out, and Raven even let him off the hook without so much as a "don't do it again." He was halfway through convincing her (or attempting, at least) to get the electric burn checked when he suddenly found his mouth and brain entirely incapable of functioning. In the past 12 hours he'd witnessed Cyborg eating 10 animals he'd personally become, walked in on Robin and Starfire making out, and taken who-know-how-many Kilowatts from absorbing and dispersing Overload, but none of those experiences shocked him into freezing up like this. He looked down slowly to confirm that yes, Raven, **the** Raven, stoic superheroine extraordinaire, had her arms around him in what could only be defined as a bear hug. It was funny, really, her head barely touched his chin when he looked down, but somehow it just felt… right… like, really right, like, downright comfortable, stay-here right… _What is going on? _ In his surprise, he didn't even manage to return the gesture before she broke off, hood suddenly up, and stood in the doorway. _Quick man, _he thought, _don't just stand here like an idiot, say something…._

* * *

"That…. That was… What was that for?" Changeling managed to get out, as Raven regained her composure. _Oh Azar_ she thought_… what do I say now? _ She hadn't meant to do that, but when he'd turned, her hand on his wrist, she knew she wouldn't have another opportunity. _Why didn't I think this through? _

"The young girl behind me." Raven's half-whisper surprised herself. "When you stopped Overload, you didn't just rescue me, you saved a mother and her second-grade daughter." Both Raven and Changeling blinked as they processed this. "I'm an Empath, remember? I felt what they felt in that moment. They knew I was at my limit, but they didn't know help was on the way. You saved them, Garfield, and… the circumstances didn't let her, but the little girl wanted nothing more in that moment than to run up and give you a hug. I thought I'd pass it along."

A pause settled between them, until Raven broke it again, surprising even herself.

"It's also from me." Changelings eyes widened, not that she could see that, as she appeared fascinated by her elf-shoes. "I send an obscure call for help, and you not only answer, you put yourself in the direct path of electrocution to do so. You tried to protect me from embarrassment, and I snap at you. You didn't need to check up on me, or be concerned about a simple burn, or even apologize, but here you are- with tea, no less."

Changeling chuckled at that. "Yeah, I hope the tea's okay, by the way…."

Raven picked the cup up from where she'd set it by the door. It was a little cool by now, but still brewed, and sweetened, the way she liked it. "It's perfect. Thank you."

"You know," Changeling's voice picked up a little humor, "I could get used to hearing that..." He adopted a false feminine voice: "Thank you, Changeling," "you're so awesome Changeling," "You make the best tea ever, Changeli…"

"Aaand there goes the moment." Raven deadpanned.

Changeling just beamed an overtly cheesy grin. "Eh, easy come, easy go" he joked. "You sure you don't want to go to the infirmary?"

"I will be fine. I just need to meditate." She paused. "And sleep. Nighttime patrols are bad enough without shielding a lighting-bolt for ten minutes."

"Nah, not me, I've got juice to spare. Maybe I absorbed some of Overload's… Hey, maybe that'll speed up my reaction time: I'm gonna go beat Cy's high score at MegaMonkeys!" Changeling did, in fact seem particularly energized.

"You go do that" stoic raven was back in perfect form, hiding her amusement well as she stepped back to operate her door.

"Will do," Garfield's peppy reply came back. "Goodnight Rae!"

The door shut and locked, and Changeling made his way to the elevator. Rather than selecting the main floor, however, Changeling pressed the level for the Titan's gym. Only once the door closed did he release a deep breath, slinking against the wall. "No, no gamestation," a gravelly voice only he could hear seemed to say. "Turn around now and claim…"

"No." Changeling whispered, clenching his fists. "Not now, not again." The elevator door opened and he made his way to the heavy bag with strong, purposeful strides. He had too much energy for Gamestation anyway.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Raven's room, two light bulbs, a vase, and every one of her pillows lay in pieces. Raven herself was breathing heavily, sitting on the floor with her back to the door, processing everything with a slight look of panic in her glazed eyes. _It was nothing. It wasn't anything. He's a strong, athletic young man and a thoughtful, well-intentioned teammate. Nothing more._

_ Oh, Raven, _an overly-sweet voice with a smug inflection whispered, _I thought you said you **weren't **repressing anything… Like I said, talk to you soon…_


	4. Changeling- the aftermath

A/N: Wow! So many reviews, so quickly! Love all the encouragement guys, definitely inspires a guy to write and post more often! So, here's the thing, I'm in the market for a Beta reader, someone to help with grammar, spelling, and the like, since my process is basically just "write and post" right now. If you're interested, message me. In the meantime, I thought I'd replace my shoutouts with a kind of "author's explanation" for the chapter, if that's okay.

So, this chapter caught me by surprise. I really intended this story to be Garfield-centric, but when I started writing I realized that I wanted to keep him kind of mysterious, reveal things only in bits and pieces. To accomplish this, I wrote from Raven's perspective. But after Nevermore chapter, I knew I needed to dive into Changeling a bit more, so I used a surprising new perspective to draw Changeling out and reveal more about what's going on in his head. Of course, then I had to twist it at the end with a glimpse into Garfield's mind... hehehe.

So, without further ado: I don't own the Teen Titans, or any of their related intellectual property/copyright, I just play here.

-TwistedPremise

* * *

Nightwing and Starfire came in from patrol around three in the morning. Starfire floated off to bed, happy with a goodnight kiss, leaving Nightwing to go through his nightly routine. After ensuring that all the security systems were active and functional, Nightwing did a walk-through of the tower, checking on teammate locations and statuses. This also gave him a chance to practice his deductive reasoning, a skill his old mentor had insisted on but didn't get much practice against meta-humans.

The basement hadn't seen any activity, and the garage seemed unchanged since this morning. The tools were still where they'd been when Changeling had called them out to the park, so aside from parking the T-car, it didn't seem like Cyborg had done anything in this space.

The common room, however, certainly showed signs of Cyborg, though surprisingly none of Changeling. The grill had been used but the dishes had been done, suggesting Cyborg had eaten alone, as he tended to get distracted by video games or TV shows and put off dishes when the shapeshifter was around. The unkempt seasoning bottles suggested he had left either distractedly or in a hurry, which was a bit unusual. Most likely, he had gotten a phone call, though who or why was uncertain. _That's been happening a lot, recently. _Nightwing noted. _And the T-car hasn't had an oil change in two months. Has Cyborg got a relationship we don't know about? _

Stopping by the evidence room, Nightwing checked the door-access patterns on his computer. Open-close pattern indicated a long (for Raven, at least) conversation with someone around 10:00, most likely Changeling. If Raven stayed in her room after the conversation, then three bedrooms were currently occupied, hers, Starfire's, and Cyborg's. _Why not Changeling's?_ Nightwing wondered, as he keyed in a query for all doors opened after 10:15. To his surprise, only the gym doors had opened in the 5 hours since then, and they'd only opened once. _Changeling's still in there!_ Robin realized, as he shut down the computer. _Better go check on him. Hope there wasn't a problem between him and Raven, they've been doing really well recently. _

The elevator lift was uneventful, but when Nightwing began walking down the hall to the gym he noticed something unusual. _That's not his normal music. _All three of the guys had their own workout playlist for solo training. Cyborg preferred old-school rock, Nightwing used House or dubstep, and Changeling typically preferred beatboxing tracks or Hollywood soundtracks like Gladiator or Transformers. This wasn't any of those things. Though the gym was supposedly soundproofed, Nightwing could pick up traces of heavy, guttural vocals accaccompanied by wailing guitars and powerful drum beats, heavy on the bass. Nightwing keyed the door half-open and slipped through quickly, shutting the door behind him. Immediately, he plugged his ears. _Changeling's got hearing at least three times as sensitive as mine, how is he not reeling from this volume? _

It was clear Changeling hadn't noticed him enter, as a green sasquatch held a barbell loaded with plates on its chest in a classic bench press. Suddenly, Changeling extended, tossing the weights out of his grip in front of him. The weights couldn't have been in the air for more than half a second before they came down, but when they did, a green gorilla caught them and brought them down immediately. Again, the weights were tossed up, and caught again by the sasquatch. Changeling settled into a rhythm, tossing the weights up, shifting, then catching them again, getting faster and faster as he did.

Nightwing took the chance to survey the disaster that was the gym around him. The heavy bag looked like it had gone through nine rounds with Cinderblock, then been ripped off its hinges and mauled by a pack of wolves. The speed bag had been ripped straight down the center from front to back. There was a pile of fur at the end of not one but two treadmills, likely because one had overheated. The squat rack's barbell had snapped at the middle from too much weight on either side.

_ Last time I saw the gym in this state was…. OH. _Nightwing reached for the volume knob on the stereo. "Last time I saw the gym like this was before your vacation" Nightwing called out as the gorilla racked the weights, alerted to his presence by the change in volume. "Anything you need to share?"

Changeling shifted back to his 21-year old self, wearing a white tank top and black shorts. _No shoes or gloves,_ Nightwing noted. "No."

"No?"

"No."

"Changeling, it's 3 AM. You've been in here for almost five hours, half destroyed the equipment, and the last time you did this you followed it up by asking me for six months of 'sabbathical.' Then, two days after I said no, the Doom Patrol sent an urgent request for your assistance, which took six months. " Changeling looked away. "You've been back for a year now, never had any issues, and suddenly this happens." Nightwing gestures to the rest of the room. "I don't want to lose you again; we missed you for those six months, but I need to know if whatever was the problem then is going to be a problem now. I need to know, Changeling, is the Doom Patrol going to call you again?"

Changeling shook his head, resolute. "No."

"No?"

"No."

_Alright, there's more than one way to get answers, if we're going to play the one-word game. _"Okay, then." Nightwing nodded. "Is this going to be a problem to the team?"

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"Is there anything we can do to help?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Does this have anything to do with Raven?"

"Yes. Wait, what?" Changeling paused as he realized what he said. Nightwing thought he heard the shapeshifter mutter "Damn bat-training."

"Changeling, you know you can talk to me..."

"I told you, my reasons were personal then and they're personal now."

"Even about personal issues." Nightwing completed. Years of leadership (and dating Starfire, to be honest) had helped the acrobat recognize that some problems needed more than a leader, they needed a friend. Sure, he obsessed over work from time to time, but he was getting better.

When all he got was a sigh, he continued. "Hell, if not me, talk to Cyborg. Or Star, even, she knows how to keep my secrets, and she knows Raven about as well as anybody…"

"It's not Raven, okay?" Changeling burst out, still not meeting Nightwing in the eye. "At least, not really. It's about me. About staying… Me."

"What do you mean?" Nightwing sat on the bench across his teammate.

Changeling sighed, resigning himself to the conversation. "Remember the Adonis thing?"

Now it was Nightwing's turn to look away. "I try not to. I made some pretty bad mistakes that evening, Garfield, and I'm sorry."

"Water under the bridge dude" Changeling dismissed it. "The problem is, what happened to Adonis and what happened to me were different."

"How?"

"I don't know about the technicals, but basically what that chemical did was bring together our primal urges into one form." Changeling stared at his hands as he continued, "For him that was aggressive, demanding, and targeted at Raven. It wanted to establish dominance, to have power over her, and was probably caught between killing her and worse."

Robin paled at the idea, at what Changeling was insinuating. "You mean?"

"Well, he wasn't exactly politely flirting with her before, and he was a hormonal teenager. Consolidate baser instincts like that and you get something pretty nasty." Now neither Titan could look at the other. "Fortunately, Cy's antidote worked, and now he's just a pipsqueak who makes big suits, and occasionally the Sunday paper."

"But that didn't happen to you," Nightwing concluded. "You protected her from him."

"Yeah, but that's kinda a weird story." Changeling qualified. "The chemical did basically the same thing it did to me as it did to him, bring together basic instincts and give them form. The difference is, it didn't just draw on my instincts, it took the instincts of the entire animal kingdom with it."

Nightwing's eyes shot up. "The entire animal kingdom? How?"

Changeling shrugged. "It's in their DNA. That means it's in mine. Anyway, the point is that among those instincts was the wolf-pack. Raven was part of my pack, and you defend your pack."

Nightwing nodded, pensive. "Okay, but you got the antidote, too. Didn't that take care of it?"

Changeling snorted. "Take care of what? Feeling the basic instincts of every animal that's ever existed every waking moment? I've been doing that since I turned green. Ever notice now alert I am late at night, or how I sleep more in the winter? Sound like nocturnal hunting patterns or hibernation tendencies to you?" Changeling chuckled without humor, shaking his head. "Winter is hell. Half of me wants to fly south, the other half wants to eat twice my body weight and sleep til May."

"Okay, so that form was driven by your animal, and human, instincts, especially the desire to protect her from him." Nightwing was putting the mental pieces together."But you haven't taken that shape ever since the serum, and your aggressive behavior returned to normal."

"Yeah, the antidote gave me control again, I guess, but that's not the point. The point is, I still have all that in me. I could still take become… that… again. You know, when I become an animal, I feel it's instincts like, a hundred times stronger than the rest of the time? I have to fight them back to keep control." Changeling paused to breathe. "I just, sometimes it all seems to rise up, and I have to run it out or I don't know what will happen to me."

Neither Titan spoke for a while.

"You know, if you'd told me all this back then, I would have let you go." Nightwing offered.

Changeling half-laughed. "I would have if I could have. I didn't understand it this well back then, I just knew that the animals were screaming, and I didn't know how to make them stop. I needed Mento, or to be out in the wild, or something, and I couldn't explain it. You'd think I was going crazy." Changeling chuckled. "Hell, I thought I was going crazy."

He ran his fingers through his hair. "But I figured it out, with a little help from the Doom Patrol, and I came back. And now, it has too."

The detective in Nightwing wouldn't let it go. "Why tonight?"

Changeling sighed. "Probably Overload. I saw him trying to kill Raven and those two civilians, and it brought back all my protective instincts all over again. Then I took God-knows-how-many Kilowatts through every cell in my body, must have put me on overdrive. It'll burn out, I've learned how to deal with it."

"And this helps?" Nightwing gestured to the gym.

"Yeah," Changeling looked around sheepishly. "Sorry about all that, I'll patch it up. Spares are in the basement, right?"

Nightwing nodded, satisfied with the response. "All right. Let me know if there's any way I can help. If you need another dose of the serum, an excuse to slip away from something to go work out like this, let me know and I'll try to be discrete."

"Really?" Changeling seemed surprised.

"Yeah. I know how therapeutic training can be, and I know what it's like to need some personal space around things you'd rather not discuss." Nightwing stood to leave. "Thank you for talking to me about this, I know it wasn't easy. Just promise me two things."

Changeling looked up at his team leader, nervous.

"First, if there's any chance this could affect the team or a mission, you let me know."

The animorph nodded slowly.

"And second, if there's any way I can help, you tell me that too."

Changeling nodded fully, relief in his eyes.

"All right then," Nightwing nodded, clapping Changeling on the shoulder as he headed towards the door. "I'll see you at 8:00 for combat training."

The only response he got was a groan as he slipped out the door. Halfway down the hall, Nightwing idly noted something. _Last time this happened was after a recon mission with Raven…._

* * *

Changeling listened for the hiss of the closing elevator door before he released a breath. It was never easy lying to the resident detective, especially after the one-word-answer stage. As he set out sweeping up the hair by the treadmill, he made a note to send Cliff- aka "robotman" a thank-you for his advice for dealing with Mento: "Always start with enough truth to establish your story. Then, figure out exactly what information you don't want to give, and see if you can find other, mostly honest information you can replace it with. If you absolutely have to, make something up, but never any more than what's strictly necessary."

_Well, I certainly cut it close on that one._ In fact, Changeling had lied very little. It was only once Robin questioned why the urges returned today that he'd had to get creative. _Sure, protecting the herd is a strong instinct, but it's not nearly strong enough to do this to me, or I'd never survive working in a team. _Changeling though. _Though the Overload bit should cover that for me, as long as I keep these "therapy sessions" to a minimum. _

There are millions of instincts inherent to the species Changeling could become… but none so strong as protecting one's mate.

_Stupid freaking mating call…_


	5. Aftermath-Raven, Part 1

Unbeknownst to Changeling and Nightwing, they were not the only ones awake in Titans Tower. After Changeling left, it had taken Raven a solid 45 minutes to rise from the floor. Add in an hour of cleaning (by hand, since she didn't trust her powers at the moment) to collect and dispose of the glass, pottery shards, and pillow fluff aggressively scattered throughout her room, and she didn't even light the first centering candle for meditation until Changeling had already destroyed the heavy bag. Had her teammates been there to witness her behavior they would surely have expressed concern. At best, it could be considered trance-like, at worst, she resembled a zombie. Eyes wide, lax jaw but close-lipped, she resembled nothing more than Cyborg the night they had discovered his robotic half could sleep-walk.

Changeling had burnt out the first treadmill before Raven had centered herself enough to begin in earnest. _Conference room, now. _She called her aspects all at once. _I will join you shortly. _She could feel her uneasiness at the idea, which trickled down to her doppelgangers. _It's been a long while since I called a conference like this_, she thought. _Almost a year and a half, now. _

She intended to join her nine components shortly, but she needed to do something first. The blackness around her faded away and she found herself where she had been not four hours before: Affection's territory. Rather than seeking out the embodiment herself, though, Raven made her way to a small grove with a meandering path. See, as the landscape of Raven's mind, Nevermore was more than a repository of Doppelgangers, it was a memory palace as well. Every experience Raven had was subconsciously organized here. All memories could be accessed a number of ways. Reason held them all, and kept them organized chronologically in her libraries.

But the memories were stored another way, as well. Every memory has an emotional quality, which put them in the care of their respective aspects. Brave, for example, kept statues of enemies defeated or obstacles overcome, and one could access the memories of brave times by touching these statues. (Happy cracked up over the statue of Starfire's pudding next to the statue of Mallah, but Brave asserted that both required equal measures of herself to overcome, and that if anything, the pudding should be closer to Trigon.) Happy kept pictures in scrapbooks, Timid buried hers in unmarked (but no less remembered) graves. But Raven wasn't here for any of their memories. She stepped into Affection's realm, getting her bearings before heading for a small forest in the distance. Like all her aspects, Affection stored memories. Hers hung from the trees in her garden.

_I remember when this place was just a single sapling_, Raven reflected, stooping under a branch to enter the grove. All around her were hundreds of objects, suspended seemingly at random from graceful, swooping branches of live oaks and weeping willows. Somewhere out of sight, a brook bubbled.

_It's funny how many of these have real-world counterparts_, Raven thought to herself. From only where she stood, she could see a set of earbuds Cyborg made for her two Christmases ago, the marionette puppet of herself that caused her to switch bodies with Starfire, and a waffle. If she reached out to touch any of these items she knew she could go back and revisit their embodied memories, but since none of them referenced memories she was looking for, she moved on deeper into the grove. She snorted and rolled her eyes when she saw a large plush chicken around the corner of a Camperdown elm, but headed in that direction. _If these are organized the way I think they are…._

And indeed they were. Just beyond the chicken were a series of objects clearly related to her green teammate. A joke book which seemed to get thicker by the second (coincidentally titled "Reader Beware"), a dog leash from their adventure with Soto, and a recipe for tofu-free vegetarian curry he'd given her after she called it "the best not-meat she ever tasted" each dangled from a thin strand from nearby branches.

Raven scanned the nearby branches until one item in particular caught her eye. _How?... _ Was all she could ask, as she reached for a white book with metal adorning on the corners. _How could anything with… Him… end up here?" _

* * *

And suddenly, Raven was in her room, putting this very book in a strongly warded trunk. There was a knock at her door.

"Raven, It's me." Beast Boy's voice lacked its usual energy. "I'm sorry.:

"For what? You're not the one that…"

"No, I'm sorry that… he broke your heart."

She didn't need empathic senses to feel how genuine he was being. "I know it was all a lie, but he was the only person who didn't make me feel like I was… creepy." She knew it was low to say it that way to the green changeling, but she couldn't find the words to put it any other way. "And don't try to tell me I'm not."

Then he surprised her. "Okay, fine. You're way creepy. But that doesn't mean you have to stay locked in your room." She paused. The truth rang through her, through all the insecurities, the fear, the hurt. "You think you're alone, but you're not."

She broke. It didn't look like it, but if she had opened her mouth she didn't know what would have poured forth, or what emotions would go with it. So she acted. Before she knew what she was doing, she keyed the door open, took two steps forward, and gave Beast Boy only the third hug she'd initiated in her life.

* * *

The memory phased out, and Raven found herself back in the grove, suddenly remembering why the stankball not only hung from a tree downwind, but was depicted on a trophy in Brave's cabinet.

Raven released the book_ No wonder that's here. That was the first time I saw that side of him. Even then he was thoughtful, pure-hearted, and somehow he knew exactly what to say. What I needed to hear. _

The next item to catch her eye was a series of letters, carved from stone. _BEASTMAN?_ She wondered, reaching out…

* * *

She stood on the rocks outside their home, Beast Boy down by the water with his back to her.

"So, he was the one who hurt you, right?" He asked without preface, or turning around. "Not me?"

_The Adonis incident,_ Raven realized. _He's not asking for himself. _She realized. _He wanted to make sure he didn't hurt ME. He's got Robin threatening him with expulsion or jail, he __just violated almost every one of his moral principles,_ _and he's genuinely concerned for my sake. "_He broke into the tower to attack you, and wound up attacking me too."

"Ugh. I can't believe I ate meat." He paused. "I acted like a real jerk, I'm sorry."

"You weren't yourself."_ And I can relate._

"Cyborg said the chemicals at the lab messed with my DNA. Unleashed something… Primal."

"And he gave you an antidote. You're better now"

"Yeah, but that Thing… that Beast… it came from inside me. And it's still there, I can feel it."

For a second, a split second, she considered telling him just how much she understood_._ Seriously considered it. "Good. If it wasn't for that Beast, I might not be here right now. Having that thing inside doesn't make you an animal. Knowing when to let it out is what makes you a man." The monks would be proud of her for that one.

"Hmm…" _How is it that he can actually express mischief in a single syllable? "_Maybe you should call me BeastMAN from now on…"

_Of course. _"We're having a moment here. Don't ruin it."

He settled back down. "Beastdude?"

She groaned, but she'd accomplished what she set out to do. Even were she not an empath, his body language spoke volumes. She was glad she could bring her friend-her genuine, playfully care-free friend- some comfort. _If anyone shouldn't need to worry about their darker side, it Beast Boy._

* * *

She shook her head as the memory resolved back to the Grove. _Where is it? _She searched the branches intently.

She needn't have bothered. Conveniently dangling over the path, within easy reach for any passers-by, was tarnished copper penny taped to a silver string. Walking up, she realized it was exactly at the height of her chakra gem, so on a whim she inclined her head forward to make contact.

* * *

It was the darkest day of her life. Everything, all the good she'd done, every person she'd saved, it was all about to be wiped away. There was nothing, and no one, who could stop Trigon.

Yet they tried anyway.

She hovered, meditating in a room with more wards than even she understood, anchored by technology she was pretty sure even Cyborg didn't understand completely. She'd tried to warn them, to convince them of Trigon's power, but they wouldn't listen. Robin had his plan, Cyborg had his tech, even Starfire had "boundless confidence and righteous fury" and the symbols inscribed on the walls from Raven's own books. Nothing gave her hope. As she "listened" to her teammate's emotions during the battle she could feel their exhaustion give way to elation, but they couldn't feel the darkness around them, replenishing Slade's ranks. Sure enough, their elation turned to discouragement, and she knew they were done for.

"For luck," He'd said as he ran out the door, leaving the penny in her grip.

_All the luck in the world won't help us now. _Her friends were out there, relying on feelings and plans and technology and luck… and they'd all run out. But when Raven closed her fist, the penny reminded her of something more than luck. It was the opposite of luck, it was the refusal to sit back and let whatever was going to happen, happen. It was that sheer, stupid, beautiful optimism that looked at a man who'd defeated them all single-handed even before becoming a demi-god and asking "you and what army?" And then fighting that army when it rose from the earth. It was Beast Boy. It was simple, it was naïve, it was even downright stupid, and it made absolutely no difference in the end.

Except it made all the difference.

Raven's eye's popped open. _That might actually work. _She rose to her feet and quickly made her way from the safe room. _It will take everything. Every ounce I have, and every resource we can muster, and even that probably won't be enough. _But that penny said she had to try. _And if it's not enough, there's always luck. _


	6. Aftermath- Raven, Part 2

I'll keep this simple: I don't own Teen Titans, and when I started this section of the story, I had no idea it would stretch on this long. Sorry to all my changeling fans, I promise I'll get back out of Raven's head as soon as the Muse will let me.

* * *

Previously, in Raven's Memories:

It was the darkest day of her life. Everything, all the good she'd done, every person she'd saved, it was all about to be wiped away. There was nothing, and no one, who could stop Trigon.

Yet they tried anyway.

She hovered, meditating in a room with more wards than even she understood, anchored by technology she was pretty sure even Cyborg didn't understand completely. She'd tried to warn them, to convince them of Trigon's power, but they wouldn't listen. Robin had his plan, Cyborg had his tech, even Starfire had "boundless confidence and righteous fury" and the symbols inscribed on the walls from Raven's own books. Nothing gave her hope. As she "listened" to her teammate's emotions during the battle she could feel their exhaustion give way to elation, but they couldn't feel the darkness around them, replenishing Slade's ranks. Sure enough, their elation turned to discouragement, and she knew they were done for.

"For luck," He'd said as he ran out the door, leaving the penny in her grip.

_All the luck in the world won't help us now. _Her friends were out there, relying on feelings and plans and technology and luck… and they'd all run out. But when Raven closed her fist, the penny reminded her of something more than luck. It was the opposite of luck, it was the refusal to sit back and let whatever was going to happen, happen. It was that sheer, stupid, beautiful optimism that looked at a man who'd defeated them all single-handed even before becoming a demi-god and asking "you and what army?" And then fighting that army when it rose from the earth. It was Beast Boy. It was simple, it was naïve, it was even downright stupid, and it made absolutely no difference in the end.

Except it made all the difference.

Raven's eye's popped open. _That might actually work. _She rose to her feet and quickly made her way from the safe room. _It will take everything. Every ounce I have, and every resource we can muster, and even that probably won't be enough. _But that penny said she had to try. _And if it's not enough, there's always luck. _

* * *

Raven stepped back and the memory dissolved around her. _I had forgotten. With Trigon and the age transformation and all the stuff with Robin, I had forgotten about that penny. _

"That's a good one, isn't it?" a voice- her own voice- called out gently behind her.

Raven turned to see Affection standing at the entrance to the grove. "It's been there for a long time, hasn't it?"

"What, the penny?"

"No, the… you." Raven indicated to her violet-clad counterpart.

"Yeah, well, kinda." Affection ventured a little closer. "I started out small, you know. Affection always does... with everyone, not just you. Lightning doesn't just crash from the sky and suddenly you're all woozy about someone…" Affection paused to indicate a bench where they could both sit. "I mean, don't get me wrong, Anger's got a series of lava pools with his name on 'em, I think sometimes they all overflow and form a small ocean." She paused to gaze at the collection around her. "But yeah, I've been around for a while."

The blue and violet rested together on the stone seat, watching light glint off the various objects as they drifted in the breeze. "I mean, I started out as gratitude. You fought together, that tends to establish a bond. But I started out that way with everyone, and now I wear different hats with everybody on the team. You already saw the penny, the thing with… he-who-will-not-be-named, and the Beast thing, so you've got some indication of the bigger picture: he cares for us, Raven, and like it or not that makes you feel."

Raven nodded, truth sinking in.

The two sat together in silence for a minute.

Without preamble, Affection stood up. "Come on, there's one more you probably ought to see before we head to congress."

Curious, Raven followed her towards the back half of the grove. Affection stopped by a long line of trees with only a few objects, far fewer than anywhere else Raven had seen. Just beyond this row the clustering of memories returned, thicker than ever. "What's this place?"

"It's a time period" Affection replied. "I don't normally organize stuff like this, but you didn't leave me much of a choice. See, this row" she gestured to the bare branches "is from about a year and a half ago, up until this point…" she reached around to pull a large object from the backside of a tree to retrieve…

"Changeling's uniform?" Sure enough, there was no mistaking the red and white pattern which had replaced the familiar purple when…

"No." Raven blinked when it the pieces came together.

"Yeah, pretty crazy, right?" Affection held the uniform up and stared at it. "That-" she pointed to the empty patch "Is from when Garfield was on his mission with the Doom Patrol. When he came back, he was wearing this."

"No…" Raven repeated, staring between the branches, sounding less sure. Sure enough, all of the items in this section of the grove were related to one of three people- Starfire, Cyborg, or Robin, in that order.

"Yeah, those six months were hell. I mean, Knowledge was content; her libraries grew tenfold during that time from all the reading you got in. Anger was more active, too, seemed like she was only a hair-trigger away, and don't get me started on Apathy. She would have thrown a party, if she could have convinced someone else to do it for her. Her territory grew so big, I honestly didn't know where it ended." Affection paused, eyes downcast. "They've all got their memories from that time in abundance. Happy, Brave, and me got almost nothing."

She seemed to get a second wind at that. "I mean, don't get me wrong, you weren't the only one affected. Empathy says the moods around the tower shifted something fierce. You realize Nightwing and Star spent four of those six months either not talking to each other, yelling, or broken up? Cyborg actually lost weight, and it had nothing to do with tech upgrades."

Affection ran her hand over the fabric of Changeling's uniform. "And then this. He left looking exactly the way he did when we met him, hadn't aged a day, and still wore that purple ensemble. Then he shows up with this new red suit, new name, new body…." She paused, distracted in her reflection, "but with that some goofy, glowing smile." Affections eyes softened and she smiled sweetly. "That was the first time, you know?"

"First time for what?" Raven had been content to sit through Affection's soliloquy, but she didn't particularly like not knowing where this conversation was going.

"First time you felt a little of what you felt three hours ago." Raven just blinked. "When I won the bet."

"Now wait a minute, that wasn't…"

"Oh, give it UP already!" Affection was exasperated and indignant. "Two lightbulbs, a vase, and four pillows don't just blow up by themselves."

"You did that…"

"I'm AM you!" That brought Raven up short. "Seriously, do you think knowledge can learn stuff without you? Or I can feel something you don't?" She scoffed. "We feel what you feel not because we make you feel something, but because you feel it, and we help you process it. Help you categorize and control. It's always been that way." Raven knew she spoke the truth.

"I am Affection. I am what you feel during your garage-time chats with Cyborg, or when Starfire braids your hair. Very different sides of me, sure, but me all the same. And as you change and grow, so do I." Affection's dramatic gesturing settled, and she refocused on the uniform in her hand. "This is an excellent example. Come with me, and I'll show you what I mean."

Raven nodded warily and stretched out to the red-and-white suit…

* * *

_ Cinderblock is in a particularly foul mood today,_ Raven thought as she surveyed the battlefield through the smoke. _Of course, the environment doesn't help. _Cinderblock had made his appearance in a small oil field outside Jump City, an area with plenty of explosive potential that effected the Titans, but not the stone golem. The workers had long since cleared out, but Cinderblock seemed irrationally intent on destroying every oil pump in sight, and the Titans were having a hard time stopping him.

"Raven, get those fires put out," Nightwing called from behind a cloud of smoke. "Star can't hit what she can't see."

So far, the plan was simple: Nighwing and Cyborg keep Cinderblock distracted and busy while Starfire aimed for a knockout blow with her flight and enhanced strength. The problem was that Cinderblock had seen this technique recently, and even Cinderblock could figure out that Star's turning wasn't sharp enough to avoid being swatted from the sky by a massive concrete palm.

_ She's tiring_ Raven realized, as she directed her attentions to the flames from a damaged derrick. _She's not moving as fast as…_

"Raven, look out!"

Raven turned, alerted by Nightwing's call, but it was too late. She could barely recognize the metal object flying at her from the smoke cloud. She might have caught it with energy, or dodged, but her energies were focused on the fire, and it was moving too quickly. She braced for impact…

And felt a collision… from her left? Raven opened her eyes to see pair of strikingly bright green ones staring back at her… green eyes. On a green face. With pointed green ears. And an easy, goofy grin that accented a large canine tooth….

"You know Rae, you really should wear a hard hat around machinery like this."

Well, that sealed it. "Beast Boy?"

"Actually, it's Changeling now" he interrupted her. "I got a new suit to go with the name change, see?"

Raven glanced down instinctively. Sure enough, the familiar purple and black were gone, a sporty red and white in their place. _That's not the only thing new,_ Raven noted as she scanned. _He fills this suit out a lot better than his old one. _A warm flush rose to her face, and she suddenly became glad she fought with her hood up.

"Uh, Rae?" Changeling inquired. "You good? Cuz, there's still a fight going on."

Raven suddenly realized that she wasn't standing, floating, or in any of her usual positions. No, she was being held, bridal style, in her prodigal friend's arms as he stood on solid ground. She was fairly certain she'd never flushed this deeply before. "Of course." She levitated upright.

"Anytime. Hey, you think you can get Robin to back off Cinderblock for a second? I got something I want to try."

Raven realized they were on the far side of the smoke from the rest of the Titans. _If they didn't see him catch me they probably don't know he's back yet. _She nodded and reached for her communicator. "Nightwing, Tell Starfire and Cyborg to back off for a second."

"Raven, you okay? You got a plan?"

"I'm fine. And yes, something like that."

She could hear Nightwing shout to her teammates.

"Nightwing, huh? Guess I'm not the only one who needed a change," Beast bo- Changeling grinned . "Now watch this…" He shifted into some kind of bird, likely a peregrine falcon, and took off.

_ Oh boy… _ Raven let the fire burn and followed to get a better view of Cinderblock. She wasn't sure what to expect- with the green shapeshifter nothing was predictable- but she knew she'd want to watch. _If only to be there to heal him…_

Cinderblock stood in a small clearing, a wrecked oil pump at his feet, fires burning on two sides. He waved his arms wildly, defending against Starfire's next attack.

"Hey, Big Dumb and Ugly," A voice called from the smoke cloud between the two fires. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

Suddenly, the smoke swelled, and the outline of a Tyrannosaurus roared at the stone giant. Cinderblock blinked in surprise but recovered quickly, answered with a roar of his own, and began running towards his challenger. The dinosaur disappeared, and a large green cat- likely a cheetah or leopard- bounded from the smoke cloud, running straight at the goliath in return.

Raven could only stare in dread at the inevitable collision. _Someone of his own size intelligence, maybe. What in Azar's name is he thinking?_

The two combatants had reached top speed and were entering striking range. Cinderblock raised a fist to pound the green animal into paste, when time seemed to slow down…

Five things happened in quick succession. First, the leopard leaped up at Cinderblock, flipping backwards in the process.

Second, the leopard reverted to Changeling's new human form. He was curled backwards in a full circle, head touching his feet, and with his head upside-down (which meant facing her) Raven could have sworn she saw a joyful grin on his face. The extreme stretch accented his new height and musculature nicely….

Then, less than a split second after the first transformation, Changeling grew into an Ankylosaur, a club-tailed dinosaur with heavy armor. The reason for his backspin became immediately evident as the centrifugal force whirled a heavy, clubbed tail into Cinderblock's unprotected jaw, lifting the giant from the ground and throwing him back with the force of the uppercut.

Fourth, the Ankylosaur disappeared, likely into a form too small to observe from the distance between Raven and the fight. Cinderblock was horizontal now, at the apex of his flight, inevitably set to fall on his back…

And finally, Cinderblock's eye's widened in despair as directly above him appeared a "small" sperm whale. Both stone and sea creature fell in tandem, and half a second after Cinderblock thudded on the dirt the whale crashed down on him with a collision like thunder.

When the shockwave dissipated and Titans opened their eyes, Changeling was reclined on an unconscious Cinderblock's chest, looking for all the world like he was sunbathing, contently grinning as he listened to the screaming missile that was a hug-bound Starfire racing towards him.

_ Azar,_ thought Raven, as an unusual warmth settling in her stomach. _It's good to have Garfield back._

* * *

The memory dissipated, leaving Raven standing face-to-face with Affection.

"And that was the day," Affection held a small, innocent smile and a far-off gaze. "The day I got a new facet for Garfield…" Raven's eyes bulged as Affection spread her arms, parting her cloak. "Lust."

Raven took two steps back, stumbling over her own feet. "Conference room. Now," she croaked out, fleeing through a black portal.

Affection's sweet innocence melted away, and she grinned with satisfaction. She allowed her cloak to cover her again as she walked back across the stretch of empty branches, plucking a small object from the tree just before them. Still grinning predatorily, she sank through the ground. "Always nice talking to you, Raven."

* * *

A/N: Alright! Sorry about the last chapter my dear readers, I know there wasn't a lot of development there. I only intended it as a setup for this chapter, just as this chapter was meant to set up the next, and it was all meant to be one big chapter but it got too big for me to wait to publish. Anyway, what do you guys think about Affection? I toned down the devious factor on this one a little, lined her up with the memories Raven's been visiting, but I think we'll see her get more aggressive soon. Gosh, these Nevermore chapters are difficult to write...


	7. Aftermath- Raven, Part 3

A/N: Hello all! Thank you so much to my reviewers, seriously, your feedback is the fuel that keeps me writing!

Well, here it is, the hardest chapter yet! This chapter is the reason I don't normally like Nevermore, there are so many "characters" that it's hard to write them all with balance and structure. That being said, I'm quite proud of how this turned out, so without further ado I present… Nevermore- the Conclusion.

P.S. If you thought I owned anything related to the Teen Titans, I don't. Not even a dvd set…

* * *

When Starfire had first asked Raven for guidance while meditating, Raven had emphasized the importance of clearing your mind of all distractions and active thought. The goal was to achieve complete silence and stillness-finding one's center- which opened up oneself to explore deeper into their own psyche, to allow the subconscious to emerge and speak.

For Raven, however, things were slightly more complicated by the fact that her subconscious had nine voices. True, she could always travel through Nevermore, speaking with each of her aspects in turn, but this wouldn't allow her to see the bigger picture. One can only truly understand the workings of a compartmentalized subconscious by putting all the pieces together in one place and allowing them to interact.

Most people would call this their "center." Raven called it her conference room.

It resembled such a space, at least, if you weren't picky about the "room" part. There were neither walls nor floor or ceiling to this space, merely objects floating in a seemingly limitless black plain. The fixtures of a conference room remained, at least. A long oak table had a slight curve to the long sides, giving it a slight oval effect. The table was ringed by ten chairs, four on each side and one at each end, with no particular designation that any chair belonged to any particular person. Nonetheless, there was a particular pattern which the users followed meticulously. Raven sat at the head of the table, with Empathy, Joy, Bravery, and Affection on her left, in that order. Across the table sat Reason, and to her left sat Anger, Fear, Sadness, and Apathy, such that Apathy sat at Raven's right.

Right now, two chairs sat empty, attesting to Raven and Affection's absence. A projector screen hovered behind Reason's chair, the picture obscured by a large "paused" icon.

Suddenly, a black portal opened, and Raven stepped through directly beside her own chair. Her face was flushed, and her breathing was ragged.

"Raven!" Happy cried, literally bounding from her chair in pursuit of a hug. Having previously been occupied by spinning in her chair, however, her aim was off, and she landed in the center of the table.

"Typical." Anger scoffed. "You always make us look foolish."

Happy just stuck her tongue out in return, playful as ever.

"Greetings, Raven," Knowledge overrode the banter, "we were just going through the video. You're right on time."

"Thank you," Raven replied as she and Happy sat. "Please, continue."

Empathy spoke up. "Don't we want to wait for..?"

"She'll be here shortly," Raven cut her off. She nodded towards the screen, and all eyes turned to the monitor.

_ Changeling picked up mid-speech. "I'll get Cy to the infirmary; we'll put some aloe or something on it, don't wanna risk infection or something…" He turned, and Raven called grabbed his wrist. _

"Pause." Raven called out, and the screen froze. "I didn't do this on my own. Reason will confirm that I didn't process the thought of actually grabbing Changeling's wrist until it was already done, which means this act was somebody's influence." The various emoticlones looked amongst each other.

"I did it" Brave volunteered. "He was about to leave, and it seemed like the best way to stop him." Raven nodded, this was basically what she expected. "But I only did it because she asked me to."

That took Raven by surprise. "Who did?"

"Me." A voice called out, and Affection rose from below the table level behind her chair. "He was being sweet, and I didn't want to be harsh with him, so I asked Brave to break protocol a little…" Affection's devious streak seemed to have recessed, and she spoke with candor that reflected the standing protocol while in the conference room: speak your peace and be heard.

"Okay." Raven seemed wary, but accepted Affection's logic. All of her Aspects were prone to action based on temporary conditions, and the idea that Affection had called on Bravery to prompt the move made sense. "Anyone else involved?"

Everyone else shook their heads, especially Reason and Fear, who had been particularly caught off guard by the move. "What about responses? Who spiked?" Raven inquired.

Empathy and Happy raised their hands, and Happy had a dreamy look in her eyes.

"Happy?"

"I didn't want him to leave!" Happy exclaimed.

_ Short, sweet, and simple, _Raven thought. Happy was like that most of the time. Raven nodded towards Empathy. "And you?"

"I always get excited with physical contact," Empathy shrugged. "We feel closer to people, and our Empathic senses get stronger towards them."

Raven nodded and directed her gaze to Fear. "Why didn't you spike?"

"To be honest, it happened too quickly," Fear (often known as Timid) shook her head quickly. "And Brave was overriding me; there wasn't room for me in the moment."

Reason cut in. "Affection and Happy were blocking out Anger and Sadness, as well. Not that there was much to prompt either of them at the time."

The embodiment of sorrow chimed in, "Yeah, I was upset we'd lashed out at him, but once Changeling accepted our apology I was satisfied."

Raven processed everything for a moment. "Okay," she braced herself. "Continue."

"_That's really not necessary, and you know it. I'll heal myself just fine, I just need to meditate." _

_ "Oh yeah, right." Changeling started turning back. "Still though, Cy will want to make sure…"_

_ In a moment of inspiration, Raven found herself wrapping her arms around Changeling, her cheek pressed against the top of his firm chest…_

"Pause."

An audible groan rose from Affection, which gave Anger a target. "You!" Anger accused, pointing at the violet cloaked doppelganger, "You put us in a position we were entirely unprepared for! You almost made us look like an idiot!"

"Hey, don't just blame me!" Affection defended. "They all had a say in it, too!" She pointed at Brave, Empathy, Happy, and _Reason?_

"Reason?" Raven enquired, surprised by the revelation.

"Well, perhaps a "say" in the matter is too strong a term..." Reason hedged. "I will admit, however, that I had the idea for the action, and, well, I was curious…"

"That was your idea?" Raven couldn't quite process the idea that her stoic self might have…

"Well, I suppose it was Affection who gave me the idea, what with your little chat beforehand and all," Reason continued, "but in the moment I thought about your bet, and how I had suggested apologizing to Garfield for lashing out, and how informative the experience might be… In any case, I may have provided the initial suggestion for the activity"

"And of course, with Garfield being so sweet and all, having just apologized…" Affection added.

"And the tea!" Happy cut in.

"And having saved us… again…" Affection included.

"And his concern about the burn!" Happy was bouncing in her chair.

"I just wanted to make him feel better," Empathy chimed in, which brought everyone to a halt. "He was still feeling guilty for his part in the misunderstanding, and concerned about our injury, and I wanted him to know we were grateful," she elaborated. "Like with the Beast incident you revisited earlier, he needed some comfort, and I- that is we- wanted to give it to him."

Raven motioned for everyone to be silent. "So all that built up in the moment, and Brave stepped in to make it happen?"

Brave nodded, unashamed.

Raven took a deep breath. "Alright then… Who spiked first?"

Instantly, every hand at the table, minus Ravens, pointed at Affection, who was beaming with pride.

"But I was close!" Happy chimed in.

"Affection?" Raven inquired warily.

"Oh, it was glorious," Affection whispered, her eyes glassy as she stared into the distance. "Finally thanking Gar for everything. For caring, for protecting us, for coming to draw us out…" She licked her lips. "And then the vindication that came from the swell! The feeling of his heartbeat, his smell, the strength of his torso, how we fit into his contour…" Affection grinned wildly. "I've never… we've never felt that all so strongly before." She seemed to come out of her reverie. "I peaked."

_ I might need to find a new phrase for that,_ Raven noted, as she fought to keep a stoic face. Affection's attire in the Grove flashed through her mind, and she blushed to think of the combination of that attire and the sensations Affection was remembering. _My sensations…._

"And that was when the power discharge destroyed the lamps" Reason supplied, factual as ever.

Raven paused at that. "Not the vase or pillows?"

"No," Fear spoke up. "That was me." All heads turned to the grey Raven-ite. "I mean, we were there and he was frozen and I thought 'what if he didn't want this?' and there were all these new feelings and I didn't want to look suspicious and we didn't have an explanation ready and there was energy going off on accident and I didn't know what was going ON!" She stopped to breathe, panting from the flooding of expression. "Brave was trying to hold me back, but you got scared and I got strong, so I shut down Affection and Happy and grabbed Reason and Apathy and we rode out the rest of the conversation."

Raven nodded. Fear was often the source of accidental power surges, and her story made sense with the rest of the memory. "And then Reason and I came up with the story about the girls and passing along the hug."

Reason nodded. "With some help from empathy, of course."

Empathy spoke up at that. "I borrowed a little bit of Bravery's assistance with the last part, as well. Gar needed something to bring him back around, and he deserved some honesty." She glanced at Affection. "We were grateful for his help and gestures, and he deserved to know as much."

Raven nodded. "Anger? You've been unusually quiet, anything to add?"

"Yeah, we're pissed at all of you," Anger's words were directed at the collection of aspects around her. "This was the worst string of unplanned emotional impulses in months, maybe years, and not only did we blow up stuff in our own room, and we nearly embarrassed ourselves in front of Changeling!" Anger cooled until her narrowed gaze rested on Affection. "And you… Everything was fine until you started mixing things up. Now we've got impulse moves, Fear spikes, and you want to start talking about physical intimacy?"

"Enough, Anger, you've said your piece," Raven chastised. It did not escape her that all these points were internal, meaning Raven was angry at herself, mostly for lack of control and the risks associated.

Reason cleared her throat. "So, Raven, it appears the facts have been laid out." She indicated the assembly. "We know what happened and why. Long story short, Affection has a new facet, one which desires a deeper relationship with Changeling, and this evening, that hug, confirmed it." She paused, looking across the length of the table directly at Raven. "The question is this: what do we plan to do about it?"

All eyes were on Raven at this point.

"I don't know."

The Aspects began to glance at each other around the room. This was unprecedented; Raven always knew what she wanted. Normally it was just a matter of telling one emotion to settle down, so why wasn't Raven doing that to Affection?

Raven sighed. "What does each of you say on the matter?"

As usual with a round-table question like this, Empathy responded first. "I say pursue a relationship, if he desires one in return, in whatever form that takes."

_ Typical, _Raven mused, _by definition, focused on the feelings of others. _

Apathy spoke up next. "I don't care what he wants; a relationship would be too much work and emotional investment."

_ Also typical. _Raven tended to favor the advice of her Empathy as a rule, though this one made her nervous.

Affection spoke up next. "You know my vote. I want everything to do with Garfield, you do too, you just don't feel it as strongly yet. I say we grab him and drag him to the nearest movie theatre, and forget about the movie."

Brave high-fived Affection for that one. "I'm with her, and I know Happy is too."

Happy was busy picking petals off a flower at the moment, muttering rhythmically under her breath, but she nodded excitedly nonetheless…

"NO!" screamed Fear, causing happy to drop her flowers, and the rest of the Aspects to turn in shock. "Don't any of you realize what they're saying? We could lose EVERYTHING! Our friend, the team, everything we've gotten used to over the years! We're in a good place now, and you want to risk that over a crush? What if he doesn't think about us that way, huh? Has he given us any indication that he wants something more? Well?!" Fear was looking at Reason now.

Reason pushed her glasses up as she considered her response. "Characteristic flirting aside, Changeling does show concern for our well-being, physically and emotionally…" Reason began, before discouragement showed on her face. "But I'm afraid neither Empathic senses nor any stretch of logic give us any indication that Changeling desires a romantic relationship with us. I suspect that we are too different to be compatible and too aloof to be desirable, and if his brief relationship with Terra is any indication, we aren't his 'type'. We've given him no reason to be interested in us. He has frequently been the butt of our jokes, we've discouraged his every attempt at humor, and we've sent him into the bay, window, or ceiling more times than even I can count."

"Exactly!" Fear was in full swing. "I say we forget about it. If we haven't felt anything from him, there's no way he's interested, and we can't take that risk!"

Sorrow spoke up, so quietly it was almost missed. "We can't take another Malchior."

The whole table froze.

She continued, "Especially not if it's him. Who will be there for us then?"

Affection tried. "Garfield would never…"

Fear was hysterical, "But what if he does?"

"Enough." Anger cut her off. "The green stain's brought me out a million times, and while I enjoy the exercise, we all know it's not healthy. I say pound him for even bringing up this mess and move on."

The table fell silent, the matter seemingly closed. It was five against four, and when both Fear and Reason stood together, you know the matter was settled.

Affection had other plans. "Reason, you said there was no indication Garfield felt the same way?"

"None that I can identify."

"But if I could provide some, would the matter stay open?"

"Perhaps…"

"Then I have a memory to present." Affection pulled a small digital recorder, the kind reporters use, from her cloak.

Raven and Reason exchanged a look. "Very well," Reason summoned the recorder to herself and turned her chair to face the screen. "When is this memory from?"

"Eighteen months and 12 days ago," Affection supplied. "Our last mission before the Doom Patrol called Beast Boy to Cambodia."

Murmurs swirled around the table as the video switched over to a forest scene and began to play.

* * *

Raven always hated forest missions. Give her a villain in the concrete confines of Jump City, or even the suburban sprawl around it, but forest missions meant hours spent weaving through trees, catching her cloak on branches, and dealing with the dirt and debris getting caught in her hood. The forest itself was fine, actually, under the right conditions the solitude and peace of a tranquil woods was refreshing, but missions in the forest were another story. Especially at night.

Yet here she was, floating a few inches off the ground because the canopy wouldn't let her go any higher, stretching her empathic senses as far as they would go without losing track of her immediate surroundings. Unfortunately, not everyone shared her distaste for nighttime forest activities. _Why hunters are even out here at this time of night is beyond me, _Raven complained to herself. _And who cares about some abnormally large paw prints, anyway? _ Indeed, Raven and Beast Boy were out here searching for something, something which had local hunters spooked. Bigfoot enthusiasts aside, plenty of respectable woodsmen had reported unfamiliar prints of a large, possibly canine, animal, and the Titans had decided it was worth looking into.

"Genetic modification or mutation has been known to produce some dangerous creatures before," Robin had argued, as he sent two of the Team out to the forested mountains east of town. "You two are best suited to rapid tracking." The boy wonder had come out once himself, looking for tracks or a trail, but given the search area and the paw prints ability to disappear as soon as they were reported, there wasn't much he could do.

So now Beast Boy was out sniffing trees or something while Raven drifted, reaching out to try and find any usual clamors or senses in the animal kingdom that might lead her to their mystery animal.

Raven was so distracted with the practice that she failed to notice a small tripwire suspended between two trees, a foot off the ground. Failed to notice, that is, until she drifted into it.

Time slowed down as Raven recognized what she had just done. It was too late to stop moving, she could hear machinery click behind her, the early stages of a sound she had heard before…

Raven turned and threw up a shield immediately, but as her eyes widened in dawning comprehension, she knew it was wouldn't be enough.

The shield was halfway formed when the shotgun went off.

Raven was on the edge of its spread pattern, and her shield protected her face and most of her chest, so for a moment as she watched buckshot bounce off her energy she thought she had escaped unharmed… and then she looked down. Each of her legs sported three, maybe four holes, already seeping blood, and when she put her hand to her abdomen, it came back crimson.

Then the pain hit.

Raven crashed to the forest floor, knowing she had only a few moments of consciousness to work with. She drew her communicator from her belt, keying for an emergency channel. "Beast Boy," she gasped, "I'm hit." It was all she could do, and her communicator rolled as her arm dropped.

As the darkness pressed in on her vision, the last thing Raven heard was a wild howl of a lone wolf…

* * *

The video ended, and the Aspects returned their attention to each other, none finding what to say.

Affection spoke up. "Cyborg says we were at the infirmary less than eight minutes after we made that call. We were at least 30 miles away from the tower, and somehow Garfield got our message, found us, and got us to the infirmary in seven minutes." She paused to stare at Reason. "Now tell me, what animal could carry us that far, that fast?"

"None," Raven cut in. "He must have used the T-ship."

Reason shook her head. "No, the jet takes two minutes to warm up, and was still at the Tower. But there isn't an animal in the world that could traverse that distance that quickly…" Her eyes widened in realization. "Unless, Garfield accessed the Beast."

The other emoticlones sat back at the notion. "Changeling never uses the Beast," Anger took up the argument. "He hasn't since…"

"Since our life was in danger from Adonis" Brave whispered.

The table fell silent again. "Okay," Reason conceded, "let's say that is the case. Beast Boy accessed the Beast again to save us a year and a half ago, and that that establishes a pattern." She paused. "I don't see what that has to do with…"

"Actually, that wasn't my point, Affection shrugged, "but it is interesting. No, my point is this." She rewound the scene with a gesture, but only about five seconds. "Listen." She let the video play.

A howl reverberated around the table.

"So?" Anger snapped, frustrated at Affection's obscure point. "What of it, a wolf howled."

"Now listen to this," Affection gestured behind her, where a new screen rose into place. Raven recognized the fight with Overload on it.

"…_Desheerey." Raven called out. A second later, a howl reverberated through the park._

"You hear it?" Affection called out. "Listen to them again." She played both howls from the two screens at the same time.

"They're identical," Reason observed, blinking at the revelation.

"And if the howl we heard eighteen months ago is the same as the one Changeling himself confirmed as a mating call…"

"Then we heard a mating call that night." Raven concluded, exasperated by the conversation. "So what, it was just a wolf."

Affection grinned like Robin preparing to checkmate Cyborg, but it was Reason who answered, "Wolves are not indigenous to this area of the country."

That brought Raven up short.

Affection's voice held confidence. "And what else is capable of generating a wolf mating call, hmm?"

Fear caught on. "You're not suggesting…"

Happy was next, "He wants us!"

Reason shut her down. "No Happy, we don't know that." She took a deep breath. "There may be a difference in the howls we cannot hear, one only distinguishable to wolves or other 'native speakers.' The context would certainly incline itself more towards a mourning or angry howl. There's also no proof that Beast Boy is the source of this howl." She paused, calculating her response. "What this does, however, is raise some interesting questions. If this howl is legitimately an expression of sexual desire, and from Garfield, then is it still valid?"

For that, everyone looked to Empathy. "I don't know," Empathy was indignant. "I can normally read Changeling clear as day, and I certainly haven't noticed anything in the past year or so." Raven nodded, satisfied, but Empathy continued. "I mean, there were definitely flashes of arousal for the three months or so before his Doom Patrol mission, but I haven't noticed any since."

"Wait, WHAT?" Raven cut in.

"Oh yeah, you don't remember that?" Empathy was nonchalant. "They were just little things, every now and then, so you dismissed them as his hormones."

"I remember that," Anger chipped in. "Caught him staring at her chest once over breakfast, sent him into the bay."

Affection chuckled. "He never did have the most discretion."

"This still doesn't change anything!" Fear cut into the conversation frantically. "His feelings have obviously moved on, he was a hormonal teenager, and we can't tell him we noticed that!" She looked around the table frantically. "This doesn't change anything, there's too much to risk!"

"Enough" Raven commanded, and all the aspects turned to her. "You've all said your piece. Reason, Affection has attempted to claim that Garfield once desired something more than friendship, exactly what is uncertain." She took a breath, bracing herself. "After this, where do you stand?"

Reason paused to think. "It's long been obvious that Garfield cares for us, despite our many flaws. We cannot determine exactly how far this affection extends, or what forms it takes, except for the obscure possibility that it was once physical. Essentially, I'm operating with either insufficient, circumstantial, or outdated information, so I cannot advise you here. That being said, I don't see enough data to act one way or another."

"That's fine," Affection surprised them all by speaking up. She turned to face Raven. "I'm not saying we need to go out there and profess undying love. Hell, I'm not even saying we should ask him out. We've made great progress in the past six hours, you barely recognized half of me before, but you've seen all of me now, and rather than deny you came to my domain, looked at the evidence yourself, then called us all here to process." She paused to gesture around the table. "I just want to be recognized, the same thing as any of your aspects here. That's what you want too, is the peace that comes from understanding yourself. Please, just allow yourself to feel me, like you learned to do with Fear so many years ago."

Raven's eyes softened, then closed as she deliberated. "Fine." The nine aspects listened intently. "I will attempt to accept this to the best of my abilities. However, Reason and Fear make valid points; I cannot and will not act until I have more information. I need to explore this new revelation in daily life, and determine which avenues are available should I choose to take one." She looked around the table, confirming what she expected; agreement from all parties, if begrudging from Fear and Apathy.

"Then if there is nothing else, I need sleep. And possibly a shower," Raven concluded, nodding to the assembly. "Thank you all for your assistance." And with that, Raven dissolved into thin air, emerging from her trance in her room.

As the emoticlones dismissed, each teleporting back to their respective realms, Brave leaned over to Affection.

"So, why'd you back off?" She inquired.

Affection's eyes glinted as she smiled. "I was never going to get around Fear and Reason, not as things stand now. I'm too young, not strong enough, especially my newer facets." Brave nodded, it had taken her a long time to grow and overcome Fear frequently herself.

Affection continued, "But all I need is to be felt. With time, and the right stimuli, I will grow. I know Garfield feels the same way, I don't care was Empathy says, and when you and I can get Reason either on our side or overpowered, Raven will have no choice but to embrace me in both action and feeling." Both emotions smiled at the thought.

"In the meantime, though," Affection's grin grew mischievous. "Raven has accepted me, which means she'll start feeling me more often…" Brave followed her eyes until they landed on a pink Raven doing loops in the air while making airplane noises. Affection gave a soft chuckle. "Raven's a smart girl with an imaginative Happy side and pent up Affection for a _very_ attractive young man," Affection explained. "What's that sound like to you?"

Brave tilted her head. "Sounds like a recipe."

Affection's eye's gleamed. "A recipe, yes. The perfect recipe for a _delicious _fantasy."


	8. Training, Part 1

A/N: All right, I'll keep this brief: Thank you, all my lovely reviewers, many of you either have or will be recieving a personal message from me soon, but in the meantime, here's another chapter for your reading pleasure. Also, I own nothing even slightly related to the Teen Titans or the characters depicted. Though I'm considering getting a green snake named Garfield, so I might own that eventually...

* * *

Raven was exhausted. The battle with Overload and the emotional sorting she'd just gone through left her physically and emotionally drained, so when emerged from a portal back into her room it was all she could do to discard her cloak before she crashed onto the bed. _It's four o'clock_, she noticed as she pulled the sheets over herself. _Training's in four hours… _Wincing at the idea,she fell quickly into deep sleep.

* * *

At precisely 7:55 AM, Raven was awoken by flashing lights. Sitting up with a start, she summoned her cloak to herself and prepared to teleport to the main room before she recognized that the lights were blue, not red. _Mock-emergency drill, _Raven realized as she took a deep breath. Nightwing had begun initiating their training sessions this way, insisting that no one wake up early to prepare. _Stupid "practice the way you perform" idea, _Raven snipped, resolving yet again to voice her disdain for the practice. _There's no point giving us heart attacks over a practice session. _Fully awake, Raven was surprised to see how tangled the sheets were around her, and she kicked them off with effort. She couldn't remember dreaming, but she must have been unusually active to make her toss and turn that much. Dismissing the issue, Raven teleported to the training fields around the tower.

* * *

She got there second, as usual, as Nightwing stood at the starting console. _How he manages to get here faster than me without a head start I will never understand. _She adopted her most irritated monotone, "Remind me again why it's necessary to initiate a routine training exercise with alarms?"

Nightwing chuckled as he lifted his coffee cup. _Wait, how does he have coffee already? _"Good morning to you too, Raven."

"Oh, good MORNING friend Raven!" Starfire's voice heralded her arrival, and she soared in with a graceful landing between Raven and NIghtwing. She leaned to kiss Nightwing on the cheek. "Boyfriend Nightwing."

"Brace for impact, Star," Nightwing responded with a grin, looking up towards the top of Titans Tower. Raven directed her own gaze there as well, and saw a flash of red and blue as Cybog's foot-rockets enhanced his leap from the roof. Two seconds later, he landed on one knee as forcefully as Starfire had gracefully, a wide grin on his face.

"Oh yeah!" Cyborg exclaimed enthusiastically, "Beat the green bean."

Raven saw the glint of green on Cyborg's shoulder, and but Nightwing beat her to it. "Actually Cyborg…"

And suddenly Changeling was sitting on Cyborg's shoulders.

"We tied," he finished for their leader.

"Wait, WHAT?!" Cyborg shouted as he registered the sudden weight on his shoulders. "You…. You hitched a RIDE on me?" He frantically reached up, attempting to grab the shapeshifter and throw him off.

Grinnning, Changeling became a Capuchin monkey and chattered wildly while dodging his friend's hands . Starfire giggled, and Nightwing waited a few seconds before coughing pointedly. The green simian somersaulted off of Cyborg's head and reverted back to human form, hands over his head in an acrobat's landing.

Unfortunately, he left his back to Cyborg.

"Ow," The green young man jumped as his hands flew to his freshly-kicked backside.

"Serves you right," Cyborg grumbled. "Turning me into a taxi…"

Nightwing cut him off. "Alright, Star and I were out late on patrol…"

Cyborg and Changeling broke into coughing fits simultaneously.

"…and Changeling and Raven took down Overload," Nightwing spoke over them, "so there's no need to push ourselves today. Instead, we'll get one good round in of close-range, then everyone's free to run the course or train free-style for an hour. Sound fair?" Everyone nodded, it was surprisingly light for a morning workout, but nobody was going to complain. "Cy and Star, you two go first, Changeling and I will go next." Normally after this combination, Nightwing would spar with Raven so she'd get a round in, as well, but he changed up the routine today. "Raven, you referee, we don't want to aggravate that burn."

Raven glanced down, realizing that she hadn't yet changed from the burnt leotard she wore yesterday, which revealed the still-unhealed redness of her lower-right ribcage. She drew her cloak around herself and nodded, hoping no one would ask questions.

Unfortunately, as Cyborg and Starfire took up positions, Changeling moved in beside her to do exactly that. "I thought you said you didn't need to go to the infirmary," he whispered.

Nightwing gave the start signal, and Starfire and Cyborg rushed at each other.

"I fell asleep," Raven insisted, failing to mention exactly when that was. "I intended to heal it this morning, but forgot about training." In truth, she had simply forgotten to take the five minutes necessary to heal herself, her emotional state taking priority.

Starfire and Cyborg locked arms, each attempting to overpower the other, until Cyborg side-stepped and allowed Starfire to soar past, straight into a small boulder.

Changeling had a wry smile on his face, "sure, that's what it is. I'm sure you just 'forgot' to heal yourself…."

Starfire flew at Cyborg, aiming for a leg-sweep…

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" Raven humored him enough to ask.

Cyborg leaped over Starfire, firing his thrusters to reverse his momentum,

"I think you just didn't want to have to spar with me," Changeling teased pseudo-arrogantly.

Cyborg was now lined up for a pile-driver over Star…

Raven surprised herself by looking away from the action to stare Changeling in the eye. "I'd have you pinned to the ground in five seconds, burn or no burn." She returned her gaze to the battle…

…As Starfire grabbed Cyborg's protruding elbow and did a barrel-roll, dragging him through the ground, literally. Cyborg's furrow ran a good forty feet, at which point Starfire let go, letting Cyborg come to a halt by colliding with a small tree.

Raven raised her hand to declare Starfire the victor, ignoring Changeling's stunned stare.

* * *

Changeling's mind had frozen. _"Did she just…? Did RAVEN really just? Surely she didn't realize...? How am I supposed to…?"_ His eye twitched.

* * *

Raven, for her part, was trying not to reveal her mortification at the double-entendre. _Where did that come from? Since when do I rise to his bait? _In hindsight, it wasn't even one of Changeling's better teases; she normally sparred with Nightwing or Starfire. _Why won't he stop __**staring**__ like that?_

* * *

A gravelly voice rumbled in Changeling's head, its words dripping with eagerness. _"I'd like to see her try. She would be a worthy challenger, a glorious battle of heated blood and will. And when it ended, we would be on top of her, close to her, ready to claim the rewards of victory…"_

"Changeling!" Nightwing called out for the second time, snapping his unbidden train of thought.

"Got it!" He called back, jogging past Cyborg, who was rubbing his head and mumbling about "deceitfully strong skinny chicks" as Starfire floated behind. Raven let out a breath, and behind her a small boulder dropped to the ground, breaking into four pieces.

Nightwing and Changeling met in a small clearing, free from debris or rocks. Garfield shook his head, trying not to focus on ideas of sparring with Raven, and if Nightwing noticed the dilation that gave his eyes a sharp, feline look, he didn't mention it. "What're the rules this time?" Garfield asked.

There were normally two rule sets Nightwing and Garfield would alternate between when sparring. The first was almost no-holds-barred, where Changeling could take any form under two tons, and Nightwing would use any weapons not deemed excessively dangerous. The second…

"No forms, no weapons," Nightwing responded, discarding his utility belt. _Oh, great,_ Changeling suppressed a groan, and instantly any thoughts of Raven's Freudian slip disappeared, replaced by thoughts of survival. He rarely escaped from these "sparring matches" without a thousand bruises. Nightwing was arguably the greatest martial artist on this side of Gotham, and spent a good 50% of his training time honing his unarmed combat. His reactions were perfect; instinctive, precise, fluid, and flexible between at least a dozen combat techniques. Changeling, on the other hand, spent more time on physical conditioning and honing his animal forms. While he was technically taller and stronger than his leader, his first instinct was to shift, not to fight, and that delayed his reactions more than enough for Nightwing to exploit.

But something was different about today.

Changeling could feel it; his blood was running… hotter, somehow. He rolled his shoulders and neck, and he could feel energy coursing through him as his muscles relaxed, settling instantly into action-ready flexibility. Feeling constricted, he opted to go shirtless, peeling off half his red and white uniform and casting the shirt aside. He settled into a boxing stance, squinting slightly against the early-morning light. Nightwing nodded, opting for an open-palm martial arts posture, as they both waited for the buzzer to start. Changeling's enhanced hearing picked up Cyborg attempting to bet Starfire that he'd last longer than three minutes before tapping out, while Starfire only expressed concern for their well-being.

_Hearing's sharper than normal _Changeling noted. _And shouldn't I be tired? Or sore, or something? I got what, three hours sleep? I feel like I could punch through a mountain right now…_

Then the buzzer went off. Instantly Nightwing went on the offensive, jumping high to come down with a potentially round-finishing spin kick, using the sun to blind his opponent. Changeling dived instinctively, rolling into a crouch facing where Nightwing landed…

…Except Nightwing wasn't there anymore. He'd followed the kick- a feint, Changeling realized-with an immediate springing jump directly at the shapeshifter, and his knee was only six inches from Changeling's face before the situation registered.

Changeling's only choice was to go backwards, so backwards he went. Pulling a "Neo," as he called it, his back stretched parallel to the ground and his head nearly rested on the dirt as he watched his blue-suited leader fly over him, knee just missing his jaw. As soon as Nightwing was clear he snapped upright and pivoted, returning to a boxing stance for no other reason than it guarded his face.

_Wow, I hope Cy got that on camera, _Changeling thought, _I've never pulled that off before. _The fact that his reactions were faster than normal, however, brought him little solace. They were ten seconds into the fight, and he was already on his heels.

* * *

Raven watched, attempting impassivity, as the two men sparred. The fact of the matter, though, was that she was finding it unusually difficult to concentrate. It wasn't until Nightwing dove for a match-ending knee to Changeling's face that she figured out why. There was a moment, brief, fleeting, but utterly captivating, where the green shapeshifter held himself parallel to the ground with nothing but his abdominals, and that was when Raven realized…

Garfield was shirtless.

It was rare that any of the Titans operated out-of-uniform, since alarms could call them into action literally 24/7. Most of the Titans didn't even bother with pajamas, opting instead to change from one uniform to the next. Starfire was the lone hold-out, but she had mastered the art of the quick-change, so it hardly made a difference. Raven actually preferred the convenience of a single outfit; It came in handy when Johnny Rancid decided to run his bike through a mall at 3 AM, and kept her fashion concerns as close to zero as she could possibly get them. So it was understandable that seeing a Titan out-of-uniform might be a bit distracting.

At least, that's what she told herself, as she watched Changeling flex and pop back up to a fighting stance, his back to her. As she did so, however, she couldn't help but notice the sculpted, muscular physique taught under smooth green skin. _Even his scars are beautiful… _Raven reflected, noticing the slightly paler green stripes. Two crossed his back, forming a nearly symmetrical X, while another lay across his lower-right ribs, wrapping around his hip to dip under his waistband just above his right buttocks…

Raven physically jerked as she snapped herself out of her idle stupor. Glancing to her left she was happy to see both Starfire and Cyborg too focused on the fight to have noticed her… _My what, exactly? Was I just… ogling Garfield? _She shook her head. _No, _she reasoned, _Nightwing made me referee. I just got distracted watching so closely. _

No one noticed the control console smoke behind her as she returned her attention to the fight.

* * *

Changeling stood, breathing heavily, as he and Nightwing circled each other. _He's not even out of breath, _he noted, glancing side-to-side for some kind of advantage.

Nightwing wasn't going to give him that chance. When Changeling's eyes darted to the right, Nightwing struck from his left, a quick jab slipping under Changeling's elbow and landing on his lowest rib.

Reflexively, Garfield struck back with a right cross as his left side caved, hoping to go over Nightwing's defenses and land a head shot, but Nightwing was too fast. He leaned behind the blow, leaving Changeling over-extended, and followed up with two quick jabs to Changeling's midsection before spinning into a high kick that landed across Garfield's shoulders, throwing him forward.

It was all Changeling could do to turn that new-found momentum into a forward roll, springing up with his arms to gain extra distance from his opponent. He landed wincing with new bruises already forming on his ribcage, and that was when the voice spoke.

_You are making us look foolish, _the baritone admonished. _Embrace me, and we will destroy him for this challenge. _

Garfield shook his head, listening for any sign of an oncoming assault. _Not that kind of fight. _

_ You need not __**become **__me to embrace me, _the voice argued. _Feel the fire in your veins even now, available to you. __**She **__has brought me out, and now the instincts of every predator known to man are yours to draw from, so __**use them. **_

Changeling paused, conflicted.

_Or are you going to sit here and be bested, again, in front of her? _

Garfield turned his head towards the audience. In the moment, all three stood frozen; Cyborg with a timer and his red eye illuminated, recording the battle for later analysis, Starfire floating, hands over her mouth to stop herself from calling out support for one party or the other, and Raven…

Raven stood there, seemingly impassive, with her hood shading her face. But Changeling's eyes were sharper than natural humans, and with the morning light he could see. More specifically, he could see her eyes, and in that moment they were looking directly back at his, a mixture of concern and…. something else, calling him to turn around and _fight. _

Something shifted inside him, and Changeling's eyes narrowed, pupils dilating to thin slits. His ear twitched as he picked up the distinct swirl of air as Nightwing came in from behind him and to the right….

Changeling twisted, reaching around behind his right shoulder to grab Nightwing's extended leg with both hands. The suddenness of the move, especially without looking, caught Nightwing off guard, and Changeling could hear Starfire's surprised gasp. With a growl, Changeling heaved, ripping Nightwing from the ground and spinning him by his captured leg a full 180 degrees before Changeling let go. Nightwing flew nearly 40 feet before twisting and landing in a deep crouch, appraising his teammate with a new level of competitive respect.

Changeling, for his part, simply turned to face Nightwing, newfound courage in his stance. _He is fast, but we are strong, _the voice appraised. _Accept his stings in order to land blows, and when he is battered, and then we will strike in earnest. _

Nightwing, however, was taking the cautious approach. Settling into a Muay Thai stance more conducive to kickboxing, he waited for Changeling to make the take the offensive.

He was more than happy to oblige. He crouched, then skyrocketed upwards, using the sun to blind his opponent just as Nightwing had at the beginning of the match.

Unlike his opponent, Changeling left a dent in the ground when he landed. Nightwing had leapt clear at the last moment, and now it was Changeling's turn to pursue. Three bounds later he had caught his quarry, and his hand found Nightwing's collar, halting his attempt to find higher ground.

NIghtwing turned, feeding the momentum into a leg sweep, but Changeling mere leaped over it. While airborne, Changeling drew his feet up, and he could see Nightwing's eyes widen in alarm. Nightwing brought his other leg up to finish the spin with a back-heel kick, but he never got there. The instant Nightwing's turn brought his back into view, Changeling kicked out **hard. **

This time it was Nightwing's turn to be launched forward, but because of their weight and power differences he didn't have nearly the control Changeling had gotten. The ever-graceful Nightwing found himself rolling like a log on the hard ground, bouncing twice before managing to right himself and settle into a crouch, one hand on the ground for stability. His other hand instinctively flew to his missing utility belt, a rare sign of desperation for the acrobat during these sessions.

Across from him, Changeling just grinned.

* * *

Raven heard Starfire's strangled gasp as Changeling's kick sent her boyfriend sprawling. Though he managed to right himself, Raven could see scuff marks on his blue uniform- unusual even during some of their more intense villain skirmishes.

She turned her attention green collegue. He stood not in any formal stance, but with his arms hanging loose in front of him, dangling from slightly hunched shoulders enhanced by his forward-leaning posture. It was more ape-like than anything, enhanced with a toothy grin that reminded her of a documentary on sharks he'd flooded the common room with several weeks earlier. She felt a rush wash through her at the sight, a mixture of intimidation and a strange draw she couldn't define. There was something…. powerful… about his posture, and she wanted to know what it was…

Nightwing had had enough of being chased, it seemed, and he sprung at his larger opponent with a flurry of blows too fast to track. She could hear several of them land, but Changeling barely bothered defending. When Nightwing went for a right cross to his opponent's cheek he was stopped short, and found his right hand encased in a large green fist, unable to pull back.

Changeling jerked the ensnared hand across his body to his hip, pulling Nightwing off-balance before releasing and whipping his hand across Nightwing's face with a smack that echoed off the Tower and lifted Nightwing from the ground.

"HOLY…" Cyborg stepped back in shock.

Starfire actually started towards the fight before she caught herself. "Please, is that not what they call the slap of bi…."

"Yeah Star," Cyborg cut her off. "That's exactly what that was…"

Changeling, however, wasn't done. With Nightwing reeling, Changeling sank his fist directly up and into his opponent's solar plexus, then followed up with a knee thrust to the exact same location.

Nightwing returned to the ground for the first time since the slap, miraculously on his feet, and backpeddaled as best he could with the air gone from his lungs. He made it only four steps before his back was pressed against a hard rock face, and a sinking feeling settled in his stomach that had nothing to do with the blows. He flashed his eyes to the side, looking for an escape route, but before he could make a break for it…

* * *

Raven gasped as Changeling moved. One moment he was several feet from his opponent, the next moment NIghtwing dangled, pinned against the boulder by a massive green hand. Changeling's hand... Around his neck... Suspending him off the ground. Nightwing struggled for a second, and if he'd had air in his lungs might have even found an escape, but as it stood he was more than beaten and everyone knew it.

_He's been dominated, _Raven thought, as she stared in wonder at the muscular green arm that held her leader immobile. _Without shifting, Changeling took the best martial artist in 100 miles and beat the crap out of him, then pinned him to the wall. _There were no words for it except… _hot…_

Raven clamped down on that sentiment immediately, and realized that she was responsible for calling the end of the match. A match that was clearly over; and if Changeling didn't let up soon would end with an unconscious Nightwing…

* * *

"ENOUGH" Raven's voice snapped Changeling out a battlefield haze, and he dropped his arm, staggering back to give Nightwing room to breathe and recover.

"Dude, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to.."

Nightwing's raised hand cut him off. Nightwing coughed a few times, getting the air back into his lungs as the others arrived from their vantage point. "Nice match," he croaked, attempting to chuckle.

"Boyfriend Nightwing, are you unharmed?" Starfire landed beside her boyfriend, crouching to help him up.

"Yeah, Star, I'll be fine," Nightwing dismissed. "I'm going to have a nice bruise from that backhand, though." He rolled his jaw gingerly and looked at Changeling. "Nice shot, by the way."

"Hell yeah, about time you opened a can of whoop-ass on 'Wing," Cyborg cut Changeling off before he could respond.

"Lucky shot," Changeling dismissed, shrugging.

_That's weird, _Raven thought. _No celebrating the win?_

"Yeah, well," Cyborg replied, "that was some luck. I don't think I've ever seen you move like that."

"I must still have some energy left from Overload," Changeling joked, rolling his shoulders.

_He said that yesterday, too. _

The comment though, seemed to give Cyborg an idea. "Hey, if you've still got some energy, wanna make a run on the course?"

Changeling beamed at the idea. "Dude, yeah, let's tear it up!"

Cyborg was already moving towards the control console. "Sweet, I'll get it fired up. Star, you and Wing wanna go…. Wait a second."

That got the rest of the team's attention.

"What's wrong Cyborg?" asked Nightwing

"The control's not responding," Cyborg keyed in the activation sequence. He popped the latches for the display and lifted it up on hinges, coughing and waving his arm at the smoke that rushed out. "That's weird, control unit looks like it just blew up, might have overheated or gotten water into it that caused a short-circuit." He paused to assess the damage. "I can have it patched up in ten minutes or so, but I'll need a new motherboard from the storage room. Rae, can you go grab one for me? I'll work on it here in the meantime, it'll take some re-wiring to save the memory."

Raven just nodded and sank into the ground.

* * *

She reappeared in the common room, making her way immediately for the tea cabinet. _Cyborg's in no hurry for the part, _she justified. _And if I'm going to get up like this just to watch everyone else train, I'm at least going to get my morning tea. _

It wasn't until the tea was already set to steep that she realized something was different. _This isn't my usual morning green tea, this is Siberian Ginseng. I only reach for Siberian Ginseng when I'm stressed, or need to calm down…_

Several possible explanations for the subconscious change in behavior presented themselves, but it was impossible to ignore what she knew. _Azar, why did he have to be shirtless? _

* * *

_A/N: Okay, I know, one of my more abrupt cliffhangers, but I've really been wrestling with this next chapter and want to get it right, since it focuses on Changeling and I'm trying to make the most of his limited screen time. This is kind of the set-up chapter for a big reveal in the next that I've honestly been trying to get for for six chapters now, so hopefully it doesn't take me long to get that written up. In any case, I hope you guys liked the action in this one, I remember the first BB-Robin sparring match like this I ever read was a great story someone wrote where Raven makes a bet on the match; if BB won, she'd go on a date with him, but I can't remember who wrote it. In any case, let me know what you think in the reviews, I swear every one is cherished and may get you a private message if your feedback is especially memorable. _

_ Hope to hear from you soon, _

_ TwistedPremise_


	9. Training, Part 2

A/N: Wow, guys! 18 review in 24 hours, with a new record of 19 for a chapter! I love you all, I really do, and I'll be sure to reply to as many as I can soon. In the meantime, here's my longest chapter yet, with no fewer than four points of view, three scenes, and 4,000 words. Enjoy!

Also: I was joking about the snake named Garfield from last chapter, though that would be epic. A Raven named Raven would be funny though, or maybe a canary named Nightwing? Anyway, I still don't own anything related to the Teen Titans. Sorry.

* * *

Raven returned to the course precisely seven minutes after first disappearing, a new monitor control board in her hands. She stepped out of her portal and passed the part directly into Cyborg's waiting hand.

"Thank you very much," Cyborg greeted without looking up from the circuitry in front of him.  
Raven simply nodded, directing her attection to the spectacle in the sky above them. It appeared that in her absence and Cyborgs busy-ness two of the remaining team members had taken up new game, a cross between dodgeball and tag often used for long-range or flight training. Raven watched as Starfire dove after a green hawk, occasionally tossing low-power starbolts at her quarry. Changeling's job was simple- attempt to escape long enough to disappear.

Theoretically, the game should have been over before Raven even got back. Starfire was the fastest flier on the team, and her starbolts were both accurate and limitless. Raven only survived any extended period during this game by using shields and teleporting, which made her hard to predict.

Changeling, however, was quick and agile. One second he was diving straight down as a hawk, the next he was using a condor's wingspan to stop in mid-air and allow a starbolt to pass under him. _It's like he has eyes in the back of his head, _Raven mused, as the condor became a hummingbird and not only dodged a flurry of bolts, but zipped tauntingly around Starfire herself before…

_A squid?_ Raven wondered, as the sea creature plummeted towards the bay. _Why would he…_

Her question was answered when she caught sight of Starfire screaming towards the water herself. Orange-tinted skin and red hair had been indiscriminately dyed black, and it was clear she wasn't aiming for any one location as much as towards water in general.

Raven just shook her head. _Haven't seen that one before. That's just dirty. _She was so distracted by Starfire's plight that she didn't notice the green sparrow coming until it slipped beside her and reverted to a-thankfully fully dressed- shapeshifter.

He knelt down, using a large rock to shield himself from the bay. "Oh hey Rae," he greeted.

She opted to support her alien friend. "She's going to kill you, and you deserve it."

He chuckled, grinned, and cringed all at once. "Yeah, probably. You wouldn't let her do that though, would you Raven? I mean, that's **your** job…"

Raven's stare betrayed no such sentiment. "Oh come on," he moaned, "I haven't won that game in weeks! I had to try something new…"

The poor guy didn't even get a chance to flinch before the starbolt collided with his backside.

Changeling whirled, hands first flying to his smoking rear, then out in front of him in a placating gesture. "Oh hey, Star, I didn't see you there…"

Sure enough, a thoroughly sopping wet and thoroughly pissed-off Starfire was stalking towards him, eyes and hands glowing green. "You are a royal Florbnargh," she declared, drawing back to release another bolt.

Changeling turned his face and braced for impact….

…But the bolt never landed.

Raven, Changeling, and Cyborg turned their attention to Starfire, who was staring at Changeling with a look of deep confusion.

Changeling risked it. "Uh, Star, are you o…" His question tapered off as Starfire flew past him determinedly. "Dude, what got into her?"

Nightwing dropped down from a ledge, presumably returning from his vantage point for the game of tag. "I saw the squid trick. Changeling still have all his limbs?"

"Yeah," Cyborg answered, "She blasted him in the butt, lined up for another round, then got distracted by nothing, stared at him like he grew an extra head."

"Odd." Nightwing turned to Changeling. "You have any idea what's going on…? Changeling?"

Changeling, however, was frozen, eyes wide in dawning panic. Raven could feel the fear locking him physically and emotionally in rigid stasis. Slowly Cyborg, Raven, and Nightwing turned to follow their teammate's gaze and found themselves watching an approaching Starfire…

…carrying Changeling's uniform?

* * *

Changeling watched Starfire approach and braced for the seemingly innocuous question that undoubtedly would lead to the awkward answer he'd been avoiding for years…

"Florbnargh Changeling,"

-and apparently he was still on the hook for the squid thing-

"When did you retrieve a new uniform?" Three heads pivoted back to Changeling as Starfire continued. "Prior to your combat with boyfriend Nightwing you removed this and left it in the clearing, yet now you possess the full attire. You never returned to the Tower."

_Okay, let's see how easily we can get out of this… _"Umm, would you believe I keep a spare in my pocket?"

From the looks of it, no one did. _Okay, time for another approach. _"You guys do realize I'm a shapeshifter, right?" Nobody dignified that with a response. "Well, you see, they don't really make a fabric that can cover transitions like snake-to-cheetah or fish-to-T-rex. For Elasti-girl or the Atom, unstable molecules or a compression matrix fabric work fine, since they only change size, not shape. But those won't work for me, so my uniform's not really a suit, per se, it's… part of me. Like a shell, or layer of scales."

Starefire brightened slightly as realization hit. "Then this is why your uniform disappears when you transform?" Raven and Cyborg appraised Starfire with confusion. "You have not noticed? When Changeling becomes an animal, that animal is green, not red and white like his uniform. It was the same when he was Beast Boy; only green animals, no purple."

The rest of the team reflected on that for a minute before nodding.

Changeling chuckled, relieved. _Okay, that went better than expected. _"Yeah, Star, that's why. I don't need the costume then, so it just kinda goes away."

"You mean you reincorporate it," Nightwing mused. "I figured it was something like that. Explains why you never have uniforms lying around in the laundry room, or order new ones."

"Wait," Cyborg interjected. "You mean that uniform's actually part of you? Like, hair or fingernails part of you?" Changeling shrugged, nodding. "So why does it look like a uniform?"

_Oh boy, _Changeling took a deep mental breath. "It's a mental picture thing."

The confused expressions around him made it clear he needed to elaborate. "Okay, uh, it's kind of hard to explain, but you have to understand how the whole 'shifting' thing works. I can't just think 'horse' and become a horse, I have to _know _what a horse is. Four legs, hairy tail, about 16 hands tall, rough idea of the skeleton, that kind of stuff. I have to have a mental picture of what I want to become, basically. My subconscious and DNA fill in the gaps for when I don't know everything, or don't have the time to think about it."

The nodding indicated that they were following the explanation so far.

"The other thing about being a shapeshifter is that there's always a question about your 'natural' appearance. Look at Martian Manhunter, he rarely ever uses his Martian form, it's always his clothed, superhero appearance. So which is his 'natural' form?"

The question was rhetorical, but Nightwing anwered it anyway. "The one he reverts to when he doesn't have control anymore."

"Exactly! Mostly." Changeling was getting animated in his dialogue. "Basically, taking any form that isn't your most natural requires focus, maintaining it does too, just less than the actual shifting. So when I fall asleep, get knocked out, or otherwise forget to maintain my form, I go back to 'default.'"

"And this is the 'default' for you?" Starfire finished the logic, indicating Changeling as he stood before them.

"Exactly," Changeling settled down a bit. "When I let my subconscious tell me what to look like, this is what comes out. It's my 'default,' uniform and all.

"But your default has changed," Nightwing observed pointedly.

"Yeah, with the Doom Patrol," Changeling nodded. "I've actually had three 'defaults' over my lifetime. The first was how I appeared when I first turned green. Mento says that image became so implanted in my brain that I couldn't override it until I was ten. Some combination of that mental image and my DNA is what prevents me from maintaining any human appearance without certain key features, like green skin or the chick-magnet ears."

He got several eye-rolls from that one, everyone but Starfire, actually. "But anyway, when I was ten that mental image of myself conflicted too heavily with my body and subconscious. See, they both _knew_ that I needed to look older, but my mental default hadn't caught up yet. Mento helped me then, diving into my head to release the mental block and reveal my new default, the one from when you guys met me."

Suddenly, Changeling had disappeared, and in his place stood Beast Boy, the skinny green kid with a purple uniform. "This one stuck until I was able to work with Mento again when the Doom Patrol called me, that's when he helped release it and reveal this." Beast Boy spread his arms and suddenly Changeling stood before them again. "I mean, the body, at least. The costume was an add-on, Mento helped me set that too, after Rita and I designed it. A little hypnosis, and now it's my default appearance! That's why when I shifted back after flying with Star I grew another shirt, I just forgot I'd taken the last one off."

"And you can just **do **that?" Cyborg sounded impressed. "Just peel off your shirt and grow a new one? I thought you said it was part of you, like skin."

"I said it was like scales, or a shell," Changeling qualified. "And lots of animals shed their skins, scales, or shells," Changeling dismissed. "We cut our hair and nails and it doesn't hurt. Heck, lots of animals regrow whole limbs, at least simple ones like tails. Is it really so weird that a shapeshifter who grows his own clothes can take them off whenever he wants?"

Cyborg thought about that for a minute. "Heck, when you put it that way…"

Starfire squealed, causing them both to jump. "You are like friend Cyborg!"

Now Changeling was confused. "Wait, how now?"

Nightwing answered for her, anticipating her logic. "Technically, Cyborg don't wear a uniform either. His is a part of him, like yours, apparently."

Cyborg had to defend his pride. "Except, of course, mine's bulletproof and doesn't come off."

Changeling just chuckled at his metal friend. _Alright, let's wrap this up before it gets awkward. _"Whatever you say, big man. It's not gonna help you beat me through the course, though," he teased. "You got that ready yet?"

"Oh yeah," Cyborg slammed the cover plate down and powered the controls up. "She's good to go. First to the finish line?"

"You got it," Changeling grinned. "Who's next after I beat the vending machine? Rae?"

The other Titans turned, having forgotten that Raven was even standing behind them. She'd been silent during their conversation, and even now she just shook her head. "I'm going to meditate and.. recover," she intoned, and sank into the ground before anyone could respond.

Starfire cast a quizzical look at her boyfriend for clarification.  
"She still hasn't healed the burn from yesterday," Nightwing explained, starting the countdown for the obstacle race before turning towards the two other guys. "Star and I will go next. No injuries, you two."

"You got it, 'Wing," Cyborg promised, as he settled into a three-point stance for takeoff.

Changeling opted for a tiger form, snorting as he prepared to run. _Was it just me, or Raven seem paler than usual before she left? _Dismissing it, he focused on the course in front of him. The voice was quiet for now, but he got the feeling it had only been partially satisfied with his match with Nightwing. _Might be time to revisit the forest, _he considered, just before the buzzer sounded. His last thought before getting caught up in the action was one of relief. _I'm just glad nobody made a big deal out of the fact that I'm technically…_

* * *

_Naked. _Raven reappeared in her room, head spinning. _No real clothes means that whatever that uniform looks or feels like, it's skin to him. _She sat on the edge of her bed for stability. _It's no big deal, _she told herself. _ He said it himself, it's like a shell, a turtle shell. _She took several deep breaths, calming her rapid heartbeat. _He's just like Cyborg, it's not technically clothing, but it might as well be. No use focusing on the fact that Garfield's technically naked… all the time… including when I hugged him last night… _

The sound of ripping echoed in her room, and Raven turned to see that her black-out curtains lay in tattered pieces on the floor. Instinctively she flew over to them to survey the damage when movement outside caught her attention.

Cyborg was blasting at a series of drones that peppered him with low-power laser bursts, but they proved too mobile for his sonic cannon to hit. Rather than target them individually, however, Cyborg seemed to be forcing the drones towards each other, into a cluster…

Suddenly, a green eagle dove from above and shifted into an octopus, grabbing all four at once and ripping them apart. Still on its way down, the octopus was replaced by an armadillo which curled into a ball just as a sonic blast launched it straight towards a steel barricade. Just before he made impact the armadillo grew to a rhinocerous and bulldozed his way straight through the sheet metal, leaving a hole for Cyborg to charge through and across the finish line.

_They certainly work well together, _Raven noted, impressed by the teamwork of that last maneuver. She watched idly as Changeling reverted to his human form and pumped his fist at the result- a new course record. Jokingly, he flexed in a classic bodybuilder pose and the glass in front of Raven cracked in a spiderweb pattern, obscuring her view.

Raven flinched away from the window, shielding her face with her hand. She reflexively ran her hand through her hair, and cringed at the greasy feeling. _A quick shower, then meditation, _she reasoned. _A nice, hot shower will clear my mind, and I certainly need it. _It had beed almost 24 hours since Raven got a shower, 24 hours which included a fight with Overload, getting burned, and a trip to Nevermore._ Cleaning up will help me calm down, Azar knows I couldn't reach my center in this state. _

Raven made her way to her en suite bathroom, hanging her cloak on a hook by the door on the way. She habitually checked that she had a fresh uniform on the counter before starting the water. There were few things worse than having to explain to everyone that you were last to arrive because you were in the shower when Johnny Rancid attacked and you didn't have a spare uniform ready to change into in a hurry.

Setting the water slightly warmer than usual, Raven peeled off the burned leotard, wincing as she bent down to pull it down and aggravated her burned ribs. _Good thing the showerhead's adjustable, _Raven thought as she reached in to twist the removable attachment, shifting the stream to a gentle flow. _I'll heal as soon as I get to meditate, I'll just be careful for now. _

The steam escaping her spacious walk-in shower confirmed that the water was sufficiently hot, so Raven gingerly stepped in and closed the fogged glass door. Savoring the sensation, she closed her eyes and stepped under the scalding spray, letting the water soak into her hair and soothe her tensed muscles. She released a deep breath, running her hands through her hair to ensure a thorough soaking, as she felt the grime and stress alike wash down the drain. She luxuriated in the feeling, and for a brief moment, her mind went completely still.

As she reached for the shampoo, she could faintly hear the sound of a hydraulic door sliding. She didn't think much of it, Silkie had apparently learned to operate doors recently- a trick she slightly suspected Garfield had taught him- and her friends never entered her room uninvited anyway.

She was just starting to lather her hair when a tap on the shower door alerted her to someone's presence. Raven cracked the door and found herself staring at a pair of green pectorals. Her eye's widened, but she kept her calm as she pulled her gaze up to his eyes, which clearly and confidently stared into her own.

"Hey Rae, my shower's busted, and I gotta meet Cy downstairs in ten to head to town. Mind if I join you?" His voice was confident, so casual that it never occurred to Raven to say no.

She stepped aside, giving him room to enter, and he grinned in thanks. Raven's peripheral vision picked up the stark white of a towel wrapped around his waist, though she turned away as he let it fall to the floor. She occupied herself with working the shampoo into her hair, her back to him. She could feel him behind her as he stepped into the stream of water, ricochet droplets wetting her back.

Raven had never been more aware of their height difference: she felt dwarfed by the foreign entity behind her, keenly aware of his every movement without needing either sight or touch. Every nerve felt alive, and the air was thick with tension.

She reached for the body wash, a simple, scentless brand she preferred, but it slipped from her wet hands. Garfield chuckled behind her, a deep, masculine sound. He bent to retrieve the bottle, bringing his head and torso into view. "Let me help you with that," he insisted, leaving no room for negotiation.

Raven heard the bottle snap closed, the sound of soap lathering, then sound was rendered irrelevant.

Two hands, _Garfields large, strong, callused, sharp-tipped hands, _rubbed her shoulders, sliding smoothly with soap. Water ricochet misted her as he kneaded her tense muscles, finding knots and working them out with meticulous thoroughness before sliding down, thumbs working small, firm circles down either side of her spine. This was no oil-and-lavender massage, Garfields hands were forceful and strong, roughness only offset by the soap and water, but the results were unmistakable.

The pressure forced Raven to place her hands on the tile to let his fingers dig in to the knots, and she spread her feet slightly for balance. She could feel tension she didn't even know she was carrying melt like ice from her muscles, and she suppressed the urge to hum. Changeling's hands reached her lower spine, and rather than venture any lower Raven felt them slide up her sides, around the pink tissue on her right, over her shoulders, lifting her hair up to slide underneath and gain access to the back of her neck.

Raven couldn't help it, when Garfield's thumb worked a kink out of her neck she let out a short, guttural moan, followed by a deep sigh. She heard him chuckle behind her, and his hand pulled away to re-lather. Raven stood there, letting the water flow over her as she rolled her neck and shoulders, marveling in the release of tension.

Changeling's hands returned, running up and down her arms, soaping them top and bottom before splitting up. His right hand slid over her shoulder, under her wet hair and mixed in with her tresses, scratching lightly at the base of her scalp.

His left glided down her ribs and reached around to her stomach, soaping her taut abdomen in gradually expanding circles. Raven was in a daze, reveling in the moment, unsure what would happen next, but when Garfield's hand rose to brush the base of her breast…

* * *

Raven jerked, her eyes flying open as a pounding echoed from her bedroom door. She twisted left and right to confirm what the sinking in her stomach already knew… She was alone in the shower.

"Hey Rae," She heard Changeling's voice call, muffled by the two doorways and space between them. "Cy wanted me to bring you a new communicator, since yours got destroyed and all." He paused as though waiting for a reply. "Okay uhhh… I'll just leave it by your door, then, okay?"She could feel his presence recede down the hall as she retracted her sense.

Raven glanced down at herself, recognizing with wide eyes that her own left hand rested just below her right breast… _Exactly where his was…_

She could hear the mirror shatter in her vanity, and what sounded like more than a few books hit the floor.

She slumped on the tile, too dazed to even turn off the water. _Azar, help me._

* * *

Changeling found himself approaching Raven's door after his workout, new communicator in tow. He knocked, expecting the usual half-open-door-monotone-stare routine for having interrupted her meditation… again. When he got no response, he opted for the vocal approach. "Hey Rae," sometimes that was enough to merit an open door. No such luck this time. "Cy wanted me to bring you a new communicator, since yours got destroyed and all." No need to mention that he'd volunteered for the gig, intending to make sure she'd healed that burn like she said she would.

When he still got no response, he put his ear against the door. Now, to most people, this would be an exercise in futility. Cyborg's privacy, security, and all around construction concerns ensured that every room in the tower was more or less acoustically isolated, so attempting to listen through a wall or door was basically pointless.

Changeling, however, was not most people. His hearing was adjustably sensitive, though never any less potent than your best-hearing-endowed humans. Naturally, he resided somewhere between a horned owl and a particularly alert mouse. When he set his mind to it, however, he could literally hear a pin drop on shag carpet. Two counties over. This was how he could pick up the distinct sound of water rushing through two doors and an acoustic mousetrap of a bedroom.

_She's in the shower, _he paled a bit, begging his mind not to start drawing pictures. _It's cool, she's not gonna answer the door. I'll just.. ah… leave this here for her. _

"Okay uhhh… I'll just leave it by your door, then, okay?" he managed, turning and striding just a little faster than necessary towards the elevator. _Yeah, _he thought as an all-too-familiar growling sensation reestablished itself in his core. _Definitely gonna need to head out to the forest tonight._

* * *

Meanwhile, Starfire was celebrating a glorious run through the obstacle course with one of her favorite brunches. True, boyfriend Nightwing and she hadn't broken the new record, but she was confident they would do so next time. As she finished topping her guacamole pancakes with whipped cream and hot sauce, she made a mental note to add regular mustard to the shopping list. Somehow her teammates had forgotten that the mustard of "da john" was not suitable for anything earlier than mid-afternoon.

She floated to where she knew she would find her boyfriend, Nightwing would most certainly be in his room of records, pretending to review training footage while he caught up on the Gotham Knight's scores. She smiled as she remembered the day she had caught him with a sportscenter tab on his computer. He was so adorable when he was flustered.

She keyed the door open, peeking her head around the door frame. "Boyfriend Nightwing, would you not care to join me in the partaking of breakfast?" Nine times out of ten he'd decline, but it was always worth asking.

"No thanks, Star, I got my coffee already" Nightwing offered her a smile and indicated the mug on his desk.

"Very well," she conceded, knowing this gave her more to leverage when asking for future, more 'intimate' outings. "Will you be finished in time for the program of disgusting careers?"

She got a chuckle for her persistence. "Yeah, Star, I'll be there soon."

She beamed and left him to his ball of feet.

* * *

Starfire floated out of the doorway and it slid closed behind her. Nightwing returned his attention to his monitor, minimizing the sports report hiding his true interests: Cyborg's video of his fight with Changeling. Nightwing watched as his knee missed it's target by millimeters, though he certainly had to give the shapeshifter credit for the dodge. He focused intently on the next sequence, looking for something… anything…

_There. _Nightwing backed the video up and paused it. There was a moment, when Changeling was recovering from the kick that threw him into a roll, that something _changed. _He zoomed in on his teammate's face and was rewarded by an epiphany. _His eyes. _

Indeed, Changeling's eyes, which were pointed almost directly at the camera, had narrowed into cat-like slits, like snakes or a nocturnal predator. Nightwing keyed a screenshot, which rested in a corner of the screen as the video resumed. He watched, cringing, as Changeling caught his kick and threw him like a rag doll, like he weighed nothing. He continued watching as his evasive maneuvers failed, and he was launched into a clumsy roll. _I can't let this video get out, I'd never hear the end of it._

But it wasn't himself he was interested in. He paused the screen where he and Changeling faced each other prior to his final- unsuccessful- push. Changeling's posture had changed dramatically. From a martial arts point of view it was suicidal. Leaning forward, arms dangling, no defense, he was just _asking_ to be hit. It was raw, it was untrained, it was… _wild. _Nightwing's eye's narrowed, and he pulled up an old video file from the archives. The picture was dark, but in the shadows Nightwing could clearly see a large, vaguely apelike form with a large underbite.

Nightwing pulled the two images up side-by-side and ran a quick analysis algorithm, but he didn't need the results to come up before he knew.

The two postures were exactly the same. On the left, Beast Boy's "Beast," the manifestation of wild animal instincts. On the right, Changeling during this morning's sparring match.

_I wasn't fighting Changeling, _Nightwing rested his elbows on the desk, left hand covering right fist, in a posture he'd unconsciously picked up from his mentor. _I was fighting his other side. Or is the line between them so clear? _

Bringing up the video of the battle, Nightwing rewound to the first moment he could identify Changeling's eyes changing. Hey keyed in one more software, a more complex one that called in data from the nearby security cameras around the island, as well as Cyborg's own data. The computer began composing 3-dimensional model of the island during that moment of the film, including the Titan's pasture and locations. As the model processed, Nightwing made an additional inquiry: Define line-of-sight for each Titan.

He reached for his coffee, flipped over to the Gotham Knights results, sighed in defeat, opened his bank website, transferred $100 to the account of one "Ray Horper," wondered how Speedy even keeps a secret identity with aliases like that, took a long drink, set his coffee down, and flipped back to the model processing just as the progress bar reached 100%.

His eyes narrowed as the model confirmed his hypothesis: Changeling went from normal to super-fighter with the aid of his other side… _the instant he made eye contact with Raven_. Robin sighed, filed all the evidence in an inconspicuously named folder on his personal hard drive, and shut the computer down.

He still wasn't sure what it all meant, but he knew there was more going on than Changeling would have him believe.

He rose, heading to the common room to keep his promise to Starfire. _And if Changeling won't tell me what's going on, perhaps Raven can. _


	10. Changeling's Escape

A/N: Hello, dear readers. Again, I own nothing related to the Teen Titans, but I may start reffering to my laptop as "Victor." In any case, thank you all so much for the feedback, I promise I'll address the few questions that got brought up soon, but I just _had _to post this chapter, the Muse spoke and I absolutely love the ending, it caught even me by surprise.

* * *

Raven was having hard time getting up from the tile floor of her shower. She sat there, arms wrapped around her legs as she stared through the tile in front of her, water cascading down the wall over her head and drenching her back and hair. She could not honestly describe how long she sat there or what thoughts passed through her head, all that mattered was the pounding of her racing heart and the steady dripping of water from her bangs. The alarms could have sounded, apocalypse could have threatened, even had Trigon himself ripped the roof off of Titans tower and peeled back the ceiling to attack her, nothing could have stirred her, nothing would have penetrated the literal and figurative fog around her in that time.

Once the water chilled, steam settling to fat droplets and converting her skin to a tapestry of goosebumps did Raven regain awareness enough to rise. She moved gingerly, robotically, paying no mind to the cracks in the shower tiles or the freezing chill of the water crashing over her. Her eyes remain wide and dilated, looking nowhere but straight ahead as her hands completed the task of washing her. The shampoo had long since rinsed from her black tresses, but the body wash rested undisturbed where she always left it, so it was retrieved, lathered into a washcloth, and returned without incident. Later, Raven stepped out of the shower, grabbed her towel to dry off, and wondered idly if she'd washed her legs.

Then, when she stepped out of the restroom into her own room, she wondered when she'd healed her side, or gotten dressed, because both had happened but she could remember neither.

As she crossed the room she wondered when the bookshelf had broken, splaying her collection of poetry across the floor.

And finally, as she stared into her reflection, she wondered why she was going to Nevermore.

* * *

The portal opened, and Raven stepped onto a metal catwalk over what appeared to be an infinite warehouse of computer bays. The air was cold and the lights were dim, and a the dull whirring of computer hard drives permeated the air.

"Hello Raven," Raven turned to see Reason, yellow cloak standing in stark contrast to the grey environment.

"Where are we?" Raven questioned, "and why am I here?"

Reason's snort was half a chuckle, and she offered half a grin to match. "This is my domain, though not part of it that I pay much attention to."

"What happened to the library?"

Reason pointed up. "Next level up, but it's temporarily shut down."

"Why?"

Reason just stared at her. "You couldn't handle it."

"Excuse me?" Raven was incredulous.

Reason looked out over the humming servers, formulating her answer as she rested her elbows on the railing. "The library is your center of conscious memory and thought," she began. "You shut it down because you didn't want to think anymore."

"I didn't want to _feel _anymore," Raven argued. "They were running rampant, putting ideas in my head…"

"Oh please," Reason cut her off, turning to stare her down. "You were feeling just fine until Garfield knocked on the door. Thinking fine, too, thank you very much."

"Wait, you're saying _you _were involved in that?" Raven was flabbergasted, and a little mortified.

"Myself, Timid, Affection, and Happy, yes."

Raven seemed unable to process this revelation. Knowledge sighed, "Raven, I have many facets. Reason, knowledge, and yes, Imagination, are among them."

"There was no _Reason _in that!" Raven

"But there was plenty of thought. _Your _thoughts, I might add," the yellow aspect quipped.

"What?" Raven was incredulous.

"Well, unless there was some mind-control element in play none of us knows about, those thoughts were entirely your own."

"Affection must have…"

"No no no," Reason cut her off. "Your Affection certainly provided the inspiration, but you and I chose to go that direction."

"I don't remember ever choosing…"

"The door."

"What?" Raven was just confused this time.

"The door opening and closing when you were in the shower. You heard it, dismissed it, and then the Affection in you wondered 'what if it wasn't Silkie?' In that moment, you had a decision to make. You could have chosen Reason, but you chose Imagination." The yellow doppelganger folded her arms. "And then you couldn't handle the results, and shut down the library so you wouldn't have to think about it."

Raven's head was spinning. "That's not, it can't be…" She steadied herself on the railing.

Knowledge was unrelenting. "Think about this. When Garfield asked to join you in the shower, did it even occur to you to say no?"

Raven tried to remember, but the fact that nothing came to mind was answer enough.

"And every moment after, you knew something was off, didn't you? He'd never actually try that on us, and you wouldn't let him if he did, so why did it take someone banging on the door to make you realize it wasn't real?"

Raven's eyes were closed tight, desperately trying to think of a rebuttal…

"I'll tell you why," Knowledge persisted. "You _wanted _that fantasy. You refused to act on any of your desires, as Brave would have you do, so you sought out exploration and satisfaction through imagination. _You _chose imagination over reason, allowed us to suspend disbelief, and when you faced the realities of what you dreamed of you shut down conscious thought so you wouldn't have to process and accept it."

Knowledge's voice grew softer. "But you forgot something. When your rational thought shut down, your emotions didn't, did they? You could still feel everything under your skin, humming like these machines, even as you ignored them." Knowledge indicated the facility around them. "This is your subconscious memory, the place you store how to breathe, your muscle memory, and the subconscious thought related to emotion. Much of your daily decision-making happens here. All the things you don't think about, you just do? That's subconscious thought, and it's like a computer running background programs that let you surf the internet. So much happens behind the scenes that if you tried to control it all consciously you'd die, because you can't focus on that many things at once."

Raven found her gaze drifting over the incredible banks of automation as Knowledge continued, "And emotions operate here. You can't communicate or process them without conscious thought, of course, but you can certainly finish taking a shower or healing yourself without their interference. And as for why you're here? You're here because you _knew_ that you needed answers, so you came to me."

Raven shook her head as though breaking off cobwebs. "Okay. Okay, fine. I admit it, I was overwhelmed. I didn't realize that was in me, and the idea of what could have happened if it hadn't been interrupted... it terrified me." She stopped to take a breath. "So I shut it down." She narrowed her eyes in frustration. "That still doesn't tell me what I'm supposed to do about it."

Knowledge smiled. "Two things: One, take a nap."

Raven stared at her, incredulous.

"I'm serious," Knowledge put her hand on Raven's shoulder. "You're exhausted. You released so much energy with Overload, stayed up way too late working through a very complicated emotional knot, and then woke up early to have that knot retangled. Physically and emotionally, you're exhausted, and that left you particularly susceptible to emotional influence like the fantasy and the energy spikes that have torn up your room. You just got a shower, now go get some sleep."

Raven nodded wearily. It was true, every muscle in her body cried out for sleep.

"Second, once you're rested, come back to the library and we'll talk it out. I'll speak for the emotions, save you that exhaustion, and we'll figure this out, okay?"

Raven nodded, accepting the logic intrinsically. "Thank you."

Knowledge smiled. "I'm welcome."

Raven just slipped through the floor to her waiting bed in the Tower, and Knowledge knew she'd be asleep- reducing reason to almost nothing- in minutes.

From the computer bays a Raven-like voice called out. "Wow, was that fun or what?"

Knowledge grinned. "Yes, Affection, that was thoroughly enjoyable."

"By the way," the voice called back "where did you come up with the details for all that? The massage, his posture, it was PERFECT!"

"Oh," the metaphor for memory dismissed, "Raven got into those romance novels when she was seventeen, still has a few under her bed for those rainy days." She started walking back to the staircase, headed for her library. "I pulled some of the ideas from their more tame passages, though it's a shame I didn't get to explore some of the heavier concepts. We're not quite ready for that yet."

She could hear the lust in the voice, even through the computer-like interface. "Oh don't worry, she's falling asleep. Dreams are the perfect chance to let imagination and lust roam free. She got a taste of it last night, but she rarely remembers dreams." The voice paused in anticipation. "Just means we have to make it more memorable."

Reason's cloak rippled, fading to a lighter, pale yellow shade that indicated Raven had lost consciousness and only certain facets of knowledge could be accessed. Imagination grinned toothily, "I think I can help with that..."

* * *

The team normally did lunch independently, following their own late-morning and afternoon schedules and appetites, so nobody took much notice of Raven's absence after training. Cyborg spent the time doing "preventative maintenance" on the T-ship until he traded places in the kitchen with Starfire and Nightwing, who had finished their program and were headed out to do a seminar with the JCPD on identifying Metahumans in emergency environments (Nightwing was the keynote speaker). When Cyborg was washing his dishes, Changeling made an appearance, grabbing a protein bar and challenging the cybernetic wonder to a round of Gamestation. Cyborg agreed, and over the next few hours the two managed to break another three records, though none quite so lofty as the Titan's challenge course. It was only during the third hour of gaming that Changeling broke the routine.

"So, you know how they're remaking Cretacious Planet?" He led, neither man taking their eyes form the simulated combat in front of them.

"Yeah, looks like it's going to be pretty good," Cyborg replied dismissively. "They haven't released a trailer yet, have they? Are they even done with casting?"

"Yeah, they got the casting done," Changeling grimaced as his character took damage. "They're about to start filming on an island not too far up the coast, some private landowner wants to turn it into a theme park/resort after they use it, so they got a discount to use it and leave the set pieces when they're done." He paused to execute a particularly complex combo.

"So we're getting a theme park nearby soon too? Awesome." If Cyborg suspected that this conversation was leading somewhere particular, his voice didn't betray it.

"Yeah, but right now it's all about the movie," Changeling sat back as they completed the level and waited for the next to load. A false indifference creeped into his voice "Which I've been invited to consult on."

_That_got Cyborg's attention. "Wait, what? They want you to consult on a summer blockbuster? How'd you get that gig?"

Changeling grinned at his friend's dumbfounded expression. "How many people do you know who can actually _become_ a triceratops or Velociraptor? Or tell you how they'd act in a certain situation?" Cyborg thought about it and bobbed his head at the point. "Also, I _may _have saved their zoologist's life three weeks ago..." Changeling added slyly.

Cyborg accessed his memory banks… "Wait," his voice sounded incredulous. "The hot chick in the hotel fire? The one with really blonde hair, like white-blonde?"

"Yup, that's her," Changeling replied, grinning. "Turns out she graduated from Jump Central University with degrees in genetics and zoology last year and got picked up to work on the film. She pitched the idea to the director after I flew her down from the 16th floor as a pterodactyl, and he gave her permission to offer me six figures just to look over the script before they start shooting, more if I have to help them re-write or shoot the film."

"Well, all right!" Cyborg was excited for his friend. "Look at you, Mr. Big Shot, working on a multi-million dollar movie, and with a lovely lady, to boot."

Changeling laughed and shook his head. "Down, Cy, down. It's just an offer at this point, I haven't taken it, I haven't even talked to Nightwing about it yet."

"Psh," Cyborg dismissed, "what's there to talk about? It's a great opportunity, shouldn't take you out of action much if you're just consulting, and it's always nice to have some money in the bank."

As a general rule, the Titans didn't have much need for money. Nightwing managed the team's finances and expenditures, though they never really asked where the money came from. For personal spending, the Titans each received a small salary from the city in order to list them as private security consultants. Cyborg also licensed some of his minor patents to the military or research labs to fund his expensive technology needs (though he also got grants from Star Labs every now and then), and Starfire and Raven both had endorsement deals (well, Raven had the Japanese gum company, Starfire had half a dozen cosmetics and apparel companies fighting to fund her love of shopping), but Changeling and Nightwing operated with so little overhead outside of their hero identities that occasional checks from their "other teams" (the Doom Patrol and the Batman, respectively) were enough to support their free time.

Though changing that situation certainly held an appeal.

"Besides," Cyborg continued, voice growing mischievous, "There's a lovely young woman who loves animals, weird genes, and being rescued by green men in the picture. It's like you were made for each other."

Changeling just laughed, letting the good-natured teasing slide. "Well, it'd certainly be nice chance to get out of the tower without having to arrest someone." He paused, considering. "You know what, I think I'm going to go email her back, tell her I'll review the script." He hopped up, jumping the couch and making his way to the door. "Then I've got some errands to run in town, probably hit that new vegan place for dinner. Care to join me?"

"Man, ain't nobody wanna join you at a tofu bar."

"Your loss," Changeling called as the doors slid closed behind him.

Cyborg chuckled, shaking his head as he powered off the Gamestation. _Good to see the green bean getting some feminine attention. _He sobered a little. J_ust hope this one turns out better than the last._

* * *

Changeling released a deep breath as the door to his room slid shut. _I knew Cy would latch on to the zoologist piece. _He felt a little guilty, manipulating his friend like that, but every ounce of what he'd said had been true. The thing he hadn't mentioned was that he'd received that offer two weeks ago and initially declined it, worried that it would pull him from his "day job." Now, with the events of the past 24 hours, he was happy the offer was still available. _Working on the movie will be fun, and make an excellent excuse to disappear every now and then, _he reasoned as he fired up the Titan's secure email server. _For tonight though, "errands in town" will have to do._

With that, he focused on the email at hand.

_To: Rose.w _

_ Ms. Wilson, is the offer to consult on Cretaceous Planet still open? _

_ -Changeling _

* * *

A/N: Mwahahaha, I love that twist! for those of you who don't know, Rose Wilson is the daughter of Slade Wilson, and a villian (to the best of my knowledge) in the TT comics... She goes by "Ravager." So, what do you think? Drop me a review, this could go any number of directions and I'd like to hear which one you guys would like to see most.

-TwistedPremise


	11. A Rose By Any Other Name

Hello, dear readers! Yes, it is truly I, TwistedPremise, returned from the dreaded land of AFK and "the real world" to bring you a new chapter! I'm seriously sorry about bailing on the story like that, I never intended to do so or leave this story pre-completion, it just kinda ended up on the back burner while i dealt with other stuff. In any case, major thanks to all my reviewers, your feedback ultimately shaped how this chapter came together more than you can ever imagine, so thank you. I know I entered some dangerous waters introducing Rose Wilson to the story, but I trust that this solution will satisfy all my readers' concerns. In any case, I'll give my disclaimer and shut up now: I own nothing of the Teen Titans, not even a costume. (Though if I had one, it'd be a Slade or Red X costume, sorry.) As always, leave a review and I'll try to get back to you soon!

* * *

As Changeling was composing his brief email, Raven stirred from her crash-nap feeling remarkably refreshed. She blinked against the sunlight streaming from her curtain-less and cracked windows and stretched, popping her back twice. She could feel the remains of what must have been an incredibly pleasant dream fading, but she couldn't remember what it was.

_Reason was right, _she admitted. _It's amazing what a few hours sleep can do._

She took note of her room around her with frustration. _This is the worst it's been since I was 17. _Books, glass shards from her vanity, and cloth from her curtains littered the floor, as well as a few feathers she'd missed from cleaning up last night. The window was cracked in a large spiderweb pattern, and it would take one of her better reconstruction spells to recover the bookshelf. Finally, her bed sheets were twisted into a tangled mess. The fitted sheet had been pulled off two corners, her comforter was only halfway on the bed, and while Raven's right leg was entangled in her sheets her left was uncovered entirely.

_That's odd, I'm normally dead-still in my sleep. _She mused._ I'd remember if I had a nightmare. _She paused, _and I wouldn't be this well rested. _

Dismissing it, she considered returning to Nevermore to talk things out with Reason. _I'll take care of my room first, _she decided. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her that it'd been almost 24 hours since she'd had anything more than a cup of tea. _Then food_. Given a little distance from the "incident," and how she was feeling after her nap, Nevermore didn't seem so urgent a concern, anyway.

She extricated herself from the sheets and swung her feet over to her shoes, mindful of the glass pieces. She idly went about picking up the pieces of glass with obsidian energy, collecting them in front of the vanity. _It was just a daydream, _she reasoned, _a fanciful act of imagination about an attractive young man. I really shouldn't be surprised, people have those all the time, and I'm hardly the first to acknowledge his new form's appearance. _She snorted at the memory of how he'd crowed when HERO magazine ranked him over Cyborg in their "50 hottest heroes" issue. They'd actually given him credit for the pointed ears… _and I can't blame them. _

Raven's step faltered, and she glanced around quickly to determine if anything had broken, but the room was still. Releasing a sigh of relief, Raven arranged the glass she'd collected in front of the vanity mirror, took a deep breath, and concentrated: "Restituo."

She'd researched the technique for this spell to mitigate the weekly maintenance she'd ask Cyborg for shortly after moving in to the tower, and since then it'd saved her thousands of dollars and countless explanations she'd rather not give. The glass turned black, flowed like water to form one puddle, then flew to the surface of the mirror. It spread itself to cover the desired area, then the black faded to reveal a smooth, reformed surface.

Raven grinned and moved toward the window to repeat the process. As she watched the black energy spread across the thin fractures in the bulletproof surface, she wondered at her mental transformation. _I seriously overreacted… I knew there was an… attraction… to Garfield, Affection made that perfectly clear last night. I should have expected something like that, especially after his spar with Nightwing… _

She felt her face heat up at the memory as the black energy faded from the window. _No, _she closed her eyes and allowed the feeling to dissipate. _This is an emotion, just like any other. Emotions do not define or control me. They come, they go, and I've been managing mine my entire life. I can handle this. _

She opened her eyes and surveyed her room, as though daring something to crack and defy her. Nothing did.

She gave a slight nod of satisfaction, and set about arranging her curtains for magical repair. _Who was it that Knowledge said contributed to make that happen again? Imagination, Affection, Timid, and Happy? _She released the magic and watched the tattered edges of the curtain threads knit themselves together. _I thought Fear was __opposed__ to Affection? _ She lifted the edges of the curtain back up to the rod and threaded it through, levitating from the ground to do so.

The answer came to her as she turned to address the bookshelf. _No, fear isn't directly opposed to affection, just to taking action that might be risky. _She righted the bookshelf with a though, collecting wood splinters that had broken off the shelves. _There was no risk in a private moment like that… at least, not beyond the obvious. _

All the pieces were in place: "molior, restituo, perfectus." Raven felt the energy drain from her as the spell regenerated the wood into solid planks once again.

_So, now what? _She wondered, moving to restore the tangled mess of her bedsheets. _What do I do about this? Does this change anything? Sure, I'm attracted to him. I've been attracted to other guys before. Okay, he's sweet and kind and occasionally funny when he's not trying. And yes, he has been there for me when I've needed it and genuinely cares about me… but none of that changes anything. I still don't know if there's anything… there. Or what it would look like if there was potential for… something. _Her ears reddened at her pre-nap memory. _It certainly wouldn't look like that. _

Her stomach growled as she finished smoothing her blanket. _Okay, lunch time. _She glanced at the clock and blinked in surprise. _Rather, dinner time. _She took one last glance around the room to ensure everything was in good order, then turned and headed to the common room, purposefully avoiding looking at the communicator beside her door as she summoned it to the empty spot on her belt. _I just hope the evening is uneventful, I've had enough drama for the past 24 hours._

* * *

It seemed fate had finally given her a break as the doors to the common room panned open. Cyborg was at the stove, idly stirring a pot of what smelled like beef stew while his attentions remained on a panel in his other forearm. He didn't seem to notice her entrance, which was unusual, but Raven was too busy confirming the absence of a green shapeshifter to think anything of it.

"Afternoon, Victor" she called out, opting for his off-the-clock name as she made for her tea cabinet.

The semi-mechanical man jolted slightly, nearly dropping his stirring spoon as he recovered his senses. "Oh, hey Raven." He composed himself as she turned away to retrieve her kettle. "Glad you decided to rejoin civilization. You all healed up?"

Her tone made it clear she was rolling her eyes. "It was only a localized second-degree burn, nothing to be concerned about."

"And that's why we worry about it for you. Because you don't" Cyborg quipped, his caring tone allaying any potential sharpness to his words. "But it don't take three-quarters of a day to heal yourself, what's kept you?"

Raven opted for honesty, mostly. "I took a nap. Overload left me drained, and waking up early for practice didn't help. Add meditation and some cleaning, and now I'm here."

Cyborg chuckled. "Man, never know what to expect around here. The same fight that knocks you outta commission for a day turns the green bean into a record-breaking ball of energy. Can't you two find a happy medium?"

That was as good a segue as any. "Speaking of Garfield, where is he? Hiding from your six-meat stew?"

"Hey now, just one meat today, thank you. And he said he was running errands in-town, including checking out some veg-head restaurant, won't be back til late."

That let Raven off the hook for the evening. "And 'NightStar'?" Raven queried, sarcasm in her tone.

"Oh, you saw the tabloids, did you?" Cyborg grinned. "I'm gonna get a couple light-years of mileage out of this one, 'Wing's gonna hate it. Getting plenty of traction online though, surprised nobody thought of that one years ago. Anyway, they should be back soon, they're at the police convention downtown."

Then a thought occurred to Cyborg. "Hey, when do you read the tabloids? I thought you hated that 'nonsensical, vapid-minded garbage.'"

Raven was perhaps a bit _too _composed with her response. "Starfire showed me an article. How'd _you _see it?"

Cyborg just tapped the side of his head. "I got a couple web-crawlers monitoring traffic about us, just in case something slanderous or dangerous pops up. It picked up the new phrase."

Raven hummed her placating acceptance of the excuse before indicating the boiling pot on the stove. "I was going to make pasta, but that smells delicious. Is there enough for two?"

Cyborg just chuckled. "You have to ask?" He pulled out two bowls, and they sat down to eat.

* * *

Raven was washing dishes as Cyborg replaced his spices when Nightwing and Starfire came in. "Friend Raven!" Starfire called out cheerfully, though she refrained from a hug this time. "You are recovered?"

Raven let out a little huff. "For Azar's sake, I'm fine. It was a small burn and an energy draining shield, I'm healed and rested, not to mention fully fueled on Cyborg's cooking. I'm fine."

"Glad to hear it," Nightwing cut in with a mischevious grin, "because I was hoping you'd be ready to go on patrol with me tonight."

Raven remained composed, but Cyborg winced dramatically for her. "Dang Rae, you walked into that one." He turned to Nightwing. "Wait, why Raven? She just got done with patrol last night, when she got in a pretty nasty scrape. I can go."

Nightwing shrugged. "If you want to, but normally breaking the record on the obstacle course earns you three days off of evening patrols. I'm guessing Changeling's out on the town tonight, taking advantage of that right now?"

Raven cut Cyborg off. "It's all right, I'm happy to get out of the tower a bit. I didn't actually do anything at training this morning, so this is only fair."

Cyborg nodded, then grinned. "In that case, I'm gonna go grab tickets for the Jump City Jumpshot's game tonight." If anyone noticed the plurality of the word "tickets," they didn't mention it as he left for the garage.

"I will go in search of Silkie," Starfire declared, flying through the door after her mechanical friend.

Raven finished with the last bowl and set it on the drying rack. "Shall we?"

Nightwing gestured deferentially to the door. "After you."

* * *

It was an uneventful patrol, for the most part. Raven had expected Nightwing to stick with her for a while to make sure she was recovered and break off on his own after a while, but two hours in he was still jumping across rooftops beside her as she flew through the town. Suddenly his communicator chirped, and he called her over. "There's an accident involving a semi on the loop half a mile from us, blocking three lanes of traffic. Nobody hurt, but police could use your help moving the semi."

Raven nodded, understanding. It wasn't their normal line of work, but the Titans would occasionally help out with mundane things like this when they were closer to the incident than the authorities. Particularly when Nightwing wanted to demonstrate- in full view of the inevitable traffic/news copter- that Raven was back at full strength. Nothing encouraged crime like thinking a Titan was out of commission.

Raven was a quarter mile to the crash before she realized Nightwing was still following her. She slowed to let him catch up. "What are you doing?"

"Going to take statements," he responded.

"No, I mean, why are you following me. You never follow me during patrols. You take one route, I take another; we cover more area that way. It's standard Titan procedure. The only person you break that pattern for is Starfire, and that's for obvious reasons."

Nightwing coughed, lips pursing at her analysis. "Fair enough. I've been meaning to ask you something."

"And the past two hours haven't been opportunity enough?"

"Been too busy jumping rooftops. You're not exactly taking a convenient path for non-fliers."

Raven hadn't realized it, but he was right. She hadn't been going out of her way to make it hard on him, but she wasn't exactly taking his limitations into consideration with her flight path. It was a credit to his athleticism that she hadn't lost him an hour ago, actually. _Okay, but why does any of this matter in the first place? _"I didn't realize you were trying to turn patrol into social hour," she teased, her usual monotone betraying nothing.

He just snorted, a grin conceding the point. "Fine, then we'll take a break from patrol." He flipped his communicator open, checked the screen briefly, and returned it to his pocket without breaking stride. "Take care of the semi, and meet me atop the Steiley building in 15 minutes."

"That's a thirty minute drive from here."

"Lucky I'm not driving," he quipped, and took an abrupt ninety-degree turn left, leaving Raven to deal with the crash scene she'd just arrived to.

"Guess I get to take statements, then" she commented to herself as she floated down to the expressway below her.

* * *

It only took ten minutes to clear the site, get statements, and return traffic to its usual flow pattern for dusk in Jump City, so with a few short jumps Raven was able to teleport to the roof of the Steiley building three minutes early. It still wasn't fast enough.

"Over here," Nightwing called out from the corner of the flat roof, crouched behind the ubiquitous parapet as he surveyed the street below.

She floated over, entrusting the shadow of late dusk to conceal her.

"So," she mused aloud, "what question could be so important that you'd break patrol, and why all the way out here?"

They were on the far edge of town, past downtown and on the edge of the mid-density development before the city grid gave way to suburban-style housing. The Steiley building itself was just an old historic four-story building that had been renovated to a mall, and it was the tallest thing from here to the old mining buildings at the foot of the mountains outside of town.

Nightwing paused before answering. "Have you noticed anything strange about Changeling recently?"

It was fortunate Nightwing's attention was on the street, rather than on her, because Raven stiffened for a full second before relaxing enough to respond with her typical detached tone. "What do you mean?" she stalled, buying time to see what exactly her detective-trained teammate might have noticed.

"Did you two argue recently, or did something happen between you?" His tone was gentler than his words, but Raven still bristled at his inquiry.

"As a matter of fact, no, we haven't argued in quite a while." She let her tone contain a touch more finality than necessary. "Why would you assume that something's going on with us, if something's going on with him at all? For that matter, you still haven't explained what you think is strange about him in the first place." She folded her arms in front of her, letting her displeasure with the situation be known. _What the hell is he thinking?_

* * *

_Interesting, _Nightwing noted, hearing the chill in her voice. _Unusually defensive about both herself and Changeling, though she's being honest about not arguing with him recently. Also, she used "us" too casually, normally she maintains more distance in her language than that._

He took note of her posture in the reflection of the broken glass he'd positioned before she arrived: definitely defensive, and he could have sworn she froze up when he first mentioned Changeling. That was the great thing about domino masks; he could look like he was watching the street when in fact he was looking elsewhere. _Definitely comes in handy when Starfire's around too. _

But now it was time to back off. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything by it. It's just that he's been unusually active recently. When I came back from patrol last night he was still up." He turned to face her now, shifting his posture for a more casual, familiar effect.

"He does that all the time," she quipped. "He said he was feeling unusually awake after the Overload fight, said he was going to go play gamestation when he left, if I remember correctly."

"Funny. He never made it to the common room."

That brought her up short, though only for a second. "Then where was he?"

"The gym."

Her eyes widened briefly. "2:30? He was in the gym for five hours?"

"Apparently." He opted for a casual tone, trying to keep her talking. _Interesting that she knows when Star and I came in. Only way she could have known that is if she felt us arrive empathically, which means she was still awake. _

Suddenly, Raven grinned. "Explains how he dominated you this morning. He was training for it, that's when he developed that combo that put you out of commission."

"Maybe," Nightwing conceded, not ready to divulge the insights he'd gleaned from his conversation with the animorph- or his discovery about the fight itself- just yet. "But what it doesn't explain is what he's doing at a random cafe on the far side of town on his night off… or who he's meeting."

"Excuse me?" Raven's eyes widened at that revelation.

"He's across the corner, seated on the patio of the _Corner Cafe_ as we speak," Nightwing elaborated. "Two drink menus, but he's refrained from ordering anything but an appetizer-which he's only picked at." He gestured beside him, offering Raven a better vantage point to survey the patio in question.

Raven accepted the perch, narrowing her gaze as she attempted to pinpoint her teammate. "Where is he?"

"Third table from the right corner. Wearing civvies gear, blue jeans, black cap, and a red button-up, though the fact that I've never seen that in his wardrobe makes a lot more sense now."

Raven's face betrayed confliction even as she identified her teammate on the busy patio. "This is interesting, sure, but why are we here? What Garfield- or any of us, for that matter- does with his free time has never concerned us, why is…"

She tapered off as Changeling stood, rising to greet whomever he had been waiting for. A slim young woman, 22, 23 maybe, with bleach-blond hair and a gymnast's figure greeted him with a glowing smile. Her black pencil skirt and jacket and teal blouse suggested she worked for a law firm or similarly formal office, but her tan and ponytail suggested an active and outdoorsy personality. Nightwing pulled his binoculars out to get a better look. _Polished but functional fingernails, she works with her hands, possibly a laboratory? Flats, too, not heels. Again, professional but functional. No visible scars, tattoos, or birthmarks. Stud earrings, minimal makeup, energetic in a way that suggests recent career success. _

Changeling and his new acquaintance sat, and Nightwing stole a glance at Raven. Raven normally didn't betray much- if anything- even to his trained eye, which is why it took him a minute to realize what he was looking at. _Furrowed brow but wide eyes, pursed lips but soft chin, that's not just suspicion or curiosity+, that's confliction of several extremes. But which, and why?_

* * *

Raven crouched on the roof of a mall, squinting at the last rays of light, reeling from the emotional maelstrom going on inside her head. Affection and Happy were waging war with Sadness, Anger, and Reason, and it wasn't going well for the more positive aspects. Happiness was all but extinguished as Sorow surged, and though affection would never desist, she found her assertions all but drowned in the maelstrom of frustration. It wasn't until the power in her started to swell accordingly that Raven closed her eyes and forced order on her mindscape. Her mantra echoed in every crevice of every territory until the raging ceased, and she opened her eyes knowing she'd need to explain herself to Nightwing. Calling on Reason, idly wondered whether her demonic heritage was receiving some sort of divine punishment…

* * *

Nightwing diverted his eyes from the empath and returned them to the table as she spoke. "Well, there's your answer. He was working out because he's got a date, probably couldn't sleep because he was nervous. He strayed from his normal off-duty routine to have coffee with a beautiful young woman because that's what men do, and the fact that we took a break from patrol to spy on him while he did so is just more evidence that you haven't gotten over your compulsive need to be in control of everything."

Nightwing opted not to say anything. She was right, they shouldn't be here, especially now that the situation was so clearly innocuous, but she was also reacting far and away stronger than he'd expect. _She's rattled, but why? _

"Now, if you'll excuse me, we've got a city to patrol," she continued, her tone clear that any attempt to follow would be futile.

And then she was gone.

Nightwing sighed, shaking his head. _How did this go so wrong? _It seemed so simple: Changeling admitted to struggling with the beast again, then somehow accessed it during their sparring this morning with some cue from Raven. Raven then leaves training early and doesn't re-emerge until Changeling's already gone: on "errands in town," no less. Factor it all in together and it only made sense to check in on Changeling's bizarre behavior, and to bring Raven along in hopes that she might shed some light on the situation. _But clearly that didn't work out. _

_Something's going on here, and if it's not one issue between Raven and Changeling, then it's two separate issues overlapping enough I can't figure out where one starts and the other ends… _He took a deep breath, acknowledging the inevitable. _ I need backup, and there's only one person I know who can sort out a mess like this. _He flipped open his communicator and keyed a private line.

"Hey Star? Looks like a quiet night again, want to join me for surveillance of a concert in the square?"

* * *

Changeling was having a good evening. His pre-order for the new _Pirate's Code: Guilds _was placed, the new restaurant _Garden Fresh_ served a wicked black bean burger with sweet potato fries and coleslaw, and his new co-worker Ms. Wilson had offered to meet him that evening to discuss and hand over an advance script of the new Cretaceous Planet movie. He arranged to meet her at a fairly nice café/restaurant conveniently located to the edge of town, and opted to enjoy the brisk evening air with an outside table. _Lucky I can change shirts on a whim, this place is nicer than I thought,_ he noted, as the waitress brought his overpriced stuffed mushrooms to the table.

It wasn't long until Ms. Wilson arrived, looking surprisingly professional for a fresh college graduate with a job handling animals for a movie.

"Hi, Ms. Wilso…"

"Oh no, please, call me Rose," she insisted with a light laugh. "You've saved my life- thanks again, by the way- and are technically above me in the production hierarchy, let's not stand on ceremony."

"Okay, Rose it is." Changeling could already tell he liked Ms. Wil- Rose. There was something bubbly about her that made her seem fresh and vibrant. It didn't hurt that they were probably only two years apart, max.

They sat and the waitress appeared, ready for their orders.

When she left with a request for two iced teas, Rose immediately went to remove her jacket. "Sorry about my formal wear, I just had to sit through a two-hour meeting with the director and studio bigwigs about our production schedule, and they're always dressed to the nines for those meetings. Normally it's all super boring, too, but you should have seen their faces when I announced you'd agreed to review the script for us! Of course, all they care about is money, but they were going crazy! You can't _buy _celebrity endorsement like that, they want to put you as 'assistant director' or at the very least 'screenwriter' on the posters and trailers!"

The waitress returned with their drinks, and Rose took a quick sip before continuing. "But anyway, I'm super excited you decided to help. Turns out, there's a minor part of a zoologist in the newest version of the script, and they offered me the chance to fill it since I already know the lingo and animals, so I'll be in your meetings with the actors. I'm consulting on any writing that requires animals, too, so the studio knows what we can do with live animals and what we'll have to CGI, so I'll see you in those meetings too."

Suddenly, Changeling was starting to feel overwhelmed. "Wow… uh, how many writers are there, exactly?"

"Well," she paused to think, "there have been four, but right now, counting you there are only two, plus two consultants: me and the CGI specialist. And really, you're more of a consultant like me, though they'll make it seem like you were more involved in the credits. Really what they'll do is take your feedback, decide if it helps make the movie more believable/more marketable and if so make as few changes as they can while still following your advice. Does that make sense?"

Changeling breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, yeah, that helps a lot. I was starting to get nervous I'd bit off more than I can chew."

"Oh, I doubt that. I once saw you bite through steel chain."

Changeling laughed. "Yeah, that was a mistake. My teeth hurt for a week."

They shared a good laugh at that one, and Changeling found himself surprisingly comfortable with his new role in this film.

"So, do I half to call you 'changeling,' or do you go by anything else when you're not a superhero?"

Changeling almost snorted his tea, and degenerated into a coughing fit when the liquid caught in his throat.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean…"

He put a hand up to cut her off. "It's fine, you just caught me off guard, is all." He took a breath to pause and think. "I don't really go by anything else, really. I'm always kind of on-the-clock, you know?" Rose looked disappointed, but nodded.

"But if you want… call me Mark."

Her face brightened as she pondered the name. "Mark, huh? I can see that." She raised her glass in a casual toast. "Nice to meet you Mark, and here's to working together."

Changeling smiled and raised his glass. "I'll drink to that."

* * *

Almost an hour and two appetizers later, Rose excused herself to drive home. As she did she left Changeling a thick ream of paper from her messenger bag, nearly 400 pages in all, marked "confidential" across the front, and the cheerful reminder that she'd made some notes in the margins for sections he ought to pay specific attention to.

Changeling had every intention of reading it… just not tonight. He stashed the script in a mailbox to an abandoned duplex under cover of dark and his eyes drifted to the base of the mountains just outside the city limits, defined by the stars they blocked out. He shifted into a greyhound and started running, knowing he'd shift several times before he made it out of the city, and several after that before he was done for the night. As he ran, he could feel the rumble in his chest swell, and the gravel voice echoed in his head: _You cannot outrun me. You cannot exhaust me. You cannot kill me. Sooner or later I will be recognized, and you __**will**__ claim what you desire. _

His pace picked up, and he fought back the temptation to shift to something more predatory in the quiet suburban neighborhood he ran through. _I am more than my baser instincts. _

The voice rumbled as only a predator can. _For now, perhaps…._

* * *

Changeling returned to the tower, script in hand, at approximately three in the morning. He was exhausted, and wanted nothing more than a bowl of cereal before bed- a habit that put him to sleep as well as Nyquil would to a normal human being. Opting out of a spoon, he walked out of the kitchen drinking his cereal from the bowl with one hand as he let the manuscript open to a random page with his other.

A tidy string of penmanship in the corner caught his eye, and what he read sent the bowl and its contents crashing to the floor. Changeling stood, paralyzed in the center of the hall, staring in horror at the neat blue lettering. "No…" he whispered, unable to comprehend how two sentences could bring a whole world crashing down.

**_Changeling, please help me. Slade's back, and he plans to use me to destroy the Titans once and for all. _**

* * *

Eh? Ehhh? What'dya think? Poor Raven, I hated to do that to her, but I really have to explore this side of her before we can move on... Anyway, i'm not sure this was one of my more inspired chapters, though it certainly moved the plot along... Anyway, let me know what you think, I really do listen, I promise!

-TwistedPremise


	12. What We Didn't See, Part 1

Thank you again to all of my reviewers! I love that you guys were faithful enough to pick the story back up after I'd left it off for so long, it was great to see some familiar usernames again (and meet some new ones.) Your feedback actually inspired this chapter, a direction I had no intention of going but I think works really nicely. Let's see what you guys think:

Disclaimer: Seriously, I don't own anything related to the Teen Titans in any of their forms. Though if Beast Boy had a series of plushies, I'd own all of his forms... (Yeah, that doesn't sound creepy)

* * *

_Changeling may be an excellent tracker, but he's surprisingly easy prey._ The shapeshifter had spent the last half hour sitting in a café, munching on stuffed mushrooms and making pleasant small talk, completely unaware of the incredible danger he was in. _I almost feel sorry for him._

* * *

Later, Changeling wandered casually down the block, completely unaware of the presence behind him as his pursuer paid special attention to the wind currents. _No use sticking to the shadows if we cannot stay downwind. _The presence had followed the animorph four blocks from the patio to a run-down neighborhood with several derelict buildings when he started to stir.

At first it appeared he had detected the foreign entity behind him, but rather than focus on the concealing shadow of the alley Changeling made a simple sweep of the street before turning towards an abandoned duplex and made his way up the walkway.

_It's like he's __**asking**__ to be jumped, _the shadow murmered as it prepared to move quickly and without mercy.

But then Changeling did something surprising: he withdrew the ream of paper from inside his jacket and- glancing to both sides- dropped it into the mail box. Task completed, he gazed out away from the city towards the forested mountains and shifted. A green greyhound- greenhound?- ran with startling swiftness down the street, and while the shadow could have pursued, it was paralyzed by choice.

_Pursue, or investigate? _

Ultimately, curiosity won out, and as the Changeling faded into the distance the figure emerged from the shadows to cross the narrow road. Expecting the changeling's return at any moment, it wasted no time in securing the manuscript and then… disappeared.

* * *

Raven emerged atop the Steiley building again, manuscript in hand, as she confirmed she hadn't been followed or detected. Granted, her position was rather exposed from the air, but there were no tall buildings or other vantage points nearby so her presence was only detectable by a few unique individuals, none of whom had any reason to look for her this far from her patrol route. Nonetheless, she cast a quick spell of early warning to alert her to the approach of unwanted visitors, and turned her attention to the pages in her hand.

_Now, perhaps we'll get some answers. _In truth, Raven was confused. After chastising Nightwing and fleeing the scene, she found herself returning to the rooftop less than half an hour later to resume surveillance of Changeling's dinner companion. Indeed, had one taken a photo of her vigilance with Nightwing before the blonde had arrived and a second photo 45 minutes later, they might have mistaken Raven for an permanent, immobile fixture on the rooftop.

Of course, had they looked at her eyes they would have known the truth.

Raven's eyes were not their normal hue, not by a long shot. They glowed crimson from lash to pupil, a sinister look that passionately defied her pacifist origins.

This was the only difference, however. Raven still only had two eyes, her normal figure, and her attire was her crime-fighting standard. Now she stood in the dark of the night, her eyes unnaturally bright in the cloudy night, as she carefully opened the first page of the thick document.

**Changeling, thanks again for consulting on this for us, **she read in black, feminine handwriting, confusion and clarity mixing behind her furrowed brow. **–Rose**

_The blonde has a name, _she mused, the sharpness in her mental tone unbidden and unnoticed. _Let's see what other notes she might be leaving him…_

A quarter of the way into flipping through the manuscript, Raven's eyes began to dim. _It's just a script. A script and notes about animals. _She flipped back to the casting sheet: _Cretaceous Planet? _She scanned the names quickly: _there. Rose Wilson: Zoologist._

The anger and frustration began to fade, though another, bitter emotion abated only slightly as reassurance rose. _They're doing a movie about dinosaurs, and Changeling's helping… That wasn't a date, it was a business meeting… _

Raven's mental state shifted: Happiness surged, fear and anger shrank as Reason chastised them for their ridiculous assumptions. _And to think, I was ready to attack him for… what, exactly? What in the unknown depths of my psyche had me ready to pounce on my teammate like that? _

A bitter taste welled up in her mouth as the answer came to her. _Jealousy. _She'd only felt it fleetingly before, but she knew the feeling from being near Starfire when Nightwing put her to the side for his work. _But that was different, they're in a relationship, and this was much too strong for that…_

Reason supplied a rare out-of-nevermore revelation then: _Jealousy is a combination of Affection, Fear, and Anger. I'm still coming to terms with Affection; and Fear and Anger are two of my more volatile emotions. Putting those three together…._

It certainly explained what she was doing here, at least.

_This is ridiculous, _Raven thought, snapping the manuscript shut. _I was right to chastise Nightwing, even if I misunderstood the situation. Changeling hasn't done anything wrong, yet I'm stalking him on his time off and invading his privacy by reading a script and notes meant for him. _

She made to leave, but something brought her up short. _But… if this is just a business arrangement, why hasn't he told us about it yet? And why the café? Couldn't he have just picked up the manuscript from their offices? And why send a blonde zoologist his age to give it to him? _

Her eyes hardened, and she regarded the document with new suspicion. _He's going to be working with her… a cute zoologist about his age… a cute __**blonde**__ zoologist… If she has even the slightest intention towards him, it's going to be very difficult for him to resist. _For reasons Raven would vehemently deny, that worried her.

She placed one hand on either cover of the manuscript. _Fortunately, she spent a great deal of time with this, all of it focused on Changeling. If I'm right, her thoughts and emotions will have left trace imprints in these pages, and I can access those…._

Raven closed her eyes and reached for her empathic senses. Normally, her sense spread around her like a dome, lightly touching everything and everyone; getting stronger the closer she was to them. Now, however, she focused her attention to the space between her palms. She visualized herself diving deep into the pages, into the ink pressed upon them where Rose's essence would be strongest. She focused first on what she couldn't feel: there was no trace of anger, deceit, or malice. Likewise, there was no trace of love, lust, or even friendly affection.

Raven breathed a sigh of relief as she prepared to pull back her empathic senses when a burst of revelation exploded from the pages. There, in the middle of it all lie a powerful mixture of fear, desperation, and… hope?

Raven ripped the pages open to a point roughly in the center and started flipping, following the specter of whatever she felt calling to her. _There. _

She was wholly unprepared for what she found.

**Changeling, please help me. Slade's back, and he plans to use me to destroy the Titans once and for all. **

In an instant, everything changed.

Raven grew several feet, and her cloak now flowed to the rooftop where eddies of black energy twisted and coiled. Her teeth were sharpened to points, and her eyes- still only two- burned blood red again. She let out a low hiss as her energy caught the book before it could hit the roof. Suspending the offending material in front of her, Raven willed the page to turn. Sure enough, the message continued…

**Yes, my name is Rose Wilson, but if you want to know who I really am look up "Ravager" in your database. I'll bet you have a file on me.**

Raven intended to do _precisely _that… as soon as she was done ripping the blonde to pieces. She turned the page again…

**Slade Wilson- Yeah, that Slade- is my father, and he's raised me to be like him… but I don't want to be. **

Another page.

**I've done things, Changeling. Things no one should ever do, and when I stopped doing them, he made me. **

_Yeah, right…_ Raven snarled and turned the page again.

**He's got me on some drug. I don't know what, but he puts it in my food, my drink. It overrides my motor control, makes me do what he tells me. **

Another page.

**It makes me strong, but sometimes I forget things, whole days, even. Things don't make any sense or I can't tell what's real.**

_Liar, _Raven wanted to scream.

** And I can never disobey him, even when it wears off, because if I go too long without another dose… it will kill me. **

_Good. _Raven's spiteful side screamed. _I saw the way you talked to him, laughed at his jokes. He's not __**that **__funny. You set him up. You want him to like you, just so you can do __**this **__to him? I ought to kill you myself. _

**Please, don't be angry. He's ordered me to gather intel, identify weaknesses and opportunities against your team. Eventually, he'll ask me to use them. **

_I hope he does. That way I can take you down myself._

**I know you have no reason to trust me, but this is the best I can do to warn you. Assume every conversation with me is bugged, he does that.**

Now Raven was just confused. _Why bug her if she's working for him?_

**He knows I want out; he doesn't trust me. I don't know where he is, or what he has planned, just that he shows up sometimes with my drugs and instructions. **

Raven paused. it sounded incredible, unbelievable even. But this was Slade; a man who once made a deal with the devil to destroy the Earth, and then helped destroy the devil. Anything was possible...

**He's told me not to tell you about any of this, but the meds wore off during the meeting, so I've got about 24 hours of free will before my next dose.**

Another page.

**Whatever you do, don't try to rescue me. If you succeed, I'll die from withdrawals. If you fail, he'll kill me and just change his plan. **

Another page.

**And don't tell your teammates either. He's got them under surveillance, especially Nightwing, and he'll know the instant they do. **

Raven was torn. She wanted to dismiss the warning as a trick, a trap to isolate Changeling, but she'd sensed no deceit with her scan.

**For now, just keep working on the script, we can use it as cover for passing messages. **

_What is this, middle school? _

**Oh, and one more thing. I'm sporadically prescient. I get glimpses of the future, here and there, but can't control them. **

Raven snorted in dismissal. _Of course you do. _

**Here's the proof: At the café, you'll tell me to call you Mark. Also, don't bet on the Jumpshots tonight.**

_Mark? As in Garfield __**Mark **__Logan? Surely he didn't…_

**Last thing: Don't underestimate him… or me. Remember that fire you saved me from? I set it, because he told me to introduce myself and I had a vision the fire would work... I had full control when I struck the match. **

Raven paled. _Three people died in that fire. Three people we couldn't save in time..._

But the message continued.

**The movie? He's financing it, just to draw you out enough for me to get to you. Millions upon millions of dollars... whatever he's planning, it's bigger than anything he's ever done before. **

_Slade once overthrew three Central American countries… at once. _The sinking feeling in her gut as matched by the shrink of her stature as Raven reverted to normal size, but with her red eyes firmly in place. She closed the pages gently, her jaw hard-set.

_Garfield's going to do exactly what she says. _She realized. _It may be a trap, it may not, it doesn't matter. He'll still go along with it because he won't risk Slade killing her if she gets found out._

She sank into a black pool beneath her feet and reappeared in the shadows of the duplex's porch. Dropping the manuscript back into the wrought-iron box, she took flight back to her patrol route, red eyes showing no signs of dissipating.

_But if he thinks he's going on this fool's errand alone, he's wrong. Dead wrong._


	13. Understanding

Hello my beautiful, wonderful, patient, and forgiving readers! i'm so sorry about the delay, but between work and the new semester I just haven't had time (and likely won't have time) to write. This story is not over, not by a long shot, and I will update as best I can, but in the meantime, here are five scenes, four perspectives, and a ton of place-setting for the main storyline (which the muse has revealed to me and is absolutely EPIC!) I will be back to finish this, I estimate probably a dozen more chapters to go, so I promise you, TwistedPremise will not forsake this story to incompletion! I still don't own anything related to the titans... though I'm considering buying the rights to name a star "fire." Anyway, enjoy the show, and drop me a review, I live for those!

* * *

Rose Wilson walked briskly back to her car, parked under an oak tree half a block from the café. She opened her car door- a nondescript white four-door- and stiffened when she what waited for her in the passenger seat. The bright persona she'd displayed on the patio disappeared, and she took her seat with sharp, military-rigid movements. She shut the door securely reached for the cell phone. There was one saved number. She dialed it and put the phone on speaker, letting the echo of the synthetic ringing tone fill the car.

As usual, there were no pleasantries to these calls.

"You talked too much" the monotone chastised.

"I was establishing my persona," she justified, adopting a clinical tone with just a touch of dismissal. "You said bright and friendly, I was just trying to fit the part."

"I also said to gather information, which generally requires that the other party be given the chance to offer any."

"And he will. After a meeting or two like this, I intend to flip the script, use the one-sidedness to barrage him with innocent questions that build to more valuable intel." She paused, taking a breath to compose herself. "I've already gathered something: a name."

"Undoubtedly an alias, these heroes do love their 'secret identities.'"

"I don't think so," She countered. "He hesitated, and not in a 'I'm making something up' way. I'm thinking it's someone close to him, or a translation from another language. If it were entirely false he wouldn't have gotten comfortable with hearing it so quickly, but when I kept using it I could tell he acclimated to it in less than an hour. It's probably not what his team calls him, but it's something to work with."

"Very well, if you haven't heard from him in three days, follow up with an email to ensure he doesn't get distracted at this early stage. Pick the next meeting venue, also, so that we can set up surveillance. It is interesting that he chose somewhere so inconsistent with his normal routine."

"Yeah, I got that too. Too remote to quickly respond to a downtown alert, at least 10 miles from his normal recreation locations, and not even an advertised vegetarian restaurant. I'll pick the next spot though, try to endear myself by using one of his favorite hotspots. Any suggestions?"

"Just avoid the run-down diner on the edge of town. Excellent pie, but the memories won't earn you any favors."

"Terra?"

"Of course. For that matter, I'd avoid carnivals, as well."

"You really did a number on him, didn't you?"

"I hardly did anything. He has such a soft spot for outcasts it wasn't necessary."

"So how exactly did you know this would work?"

"He was raised by an actress and had a minor television role as a child: cinema is in his blood."

"No, I mean me. He's going to have his guards up, I can see it already. I don't know if he'll trust me enough to give me anything we can use."

"Then you're of no use to me," the voice was so casual, so final, that she couldn't find a response. Or her breath. "So you may need to get… creative. But for now, play it slow. We'll start filming soon, and getting him to the Island and having him work with you one-on-one will wear down his defenses. It will help that you're a supposedly normal. They're wary of agents within their organization, not civilians."

Rose nodded her assent, even though he couldn't see her through the phone. "Okay. Anything I need to do in the meantime?"

"Pick your next meeting location, then plant surveillance on surrounding rooftops. If Nightwing gets suspicious, I want to know about it. He's frustratingly meddlesome with these matters and may require some other mystery to occupy his attentions. If so, I'll handle it."

"Okay," she responded, reaching for the water bottle. She twisted the top and took a sip, confirming the alkaline taste of the invisible addition. The slow-building headache she'd been nursing for almost six hours now abated slightly, and she knew this dose wouldn't wear off for at least a week.

Slade continued. "I'll check in when he emails you, feel free to give him your cell number when he does. And Rose?"

"Yes?"

"Do try not to repeat the fiasco in Yemen. We wouldn't want to put you through that again, would we?"

She wanted shudder but found that she couldn't. "No sir."

"Glad we understand each other. I'll be in touch."

The line went dead, and Rose slumped back in her seat. She really needed to kill something right now, but she'd been ordered to maintain a low profile. And that meant no mysterious homicides or missing person's reports.

With a moment of inspiration, she mapped her way to the nearest cow pasture- about 20 miles outside of town- and started the car. As she pulled onto the highway she reached under the backseat to confirm her katana blades were still there, concealed. _Hardly a challenge, but it will have to do. After all, a girl's got to have some way to relieve stress. Otherwise, I'd have gone insane a long time ago…_

* * *

Starfire sat in silence as her boyfriend finished his story.

"…Next thing I know, Raven's gone and I'm left on the roof wondering what the hell just happened."

He released a breath of frustration and ran a hand through his hair as though to prevent it from becoming too neat. "Sorry Star, probably not what you were hoping for when I called you…"

"Boyfriend Richa…." She glanced around them, reassuring them both that they were alone on the rooftop. Still, you never knew how sound carried down to the crowds in the plaza below. "Boyfriend Nightwing, you are aware that I feel the greatest of affections for you, yes?"

The approach seemed to confuse him. "Of course, Star."

"Then you will take no offense when I say that you sometimes possess the blindness of a Zordanian muck-beetle?"

You couldn't see it behind the domino mask, but she'd seen him enough without it to picture his eyes blinking rapidly, his face deceitfully neutral.

"I have upset you."

That got a response. "No, Star, I'm just… I screwed up, and I can't figure out what's going on. One of those by themselves is bad enough, but both?" His head hunched. "You know how much I hate this."

"Boyfriend Nightwing, you mustn't do the beating of yourself for this. In reality, you may have done our friends a great deal of good without knowing it, though yes, it was wrong of you to follow friend Changeling."

"Yeah, I know. I should have given him more credit, I mean, this is Changeling we're talking about. He's never been danger to any of us before, but all it took was 24 hours of slightly strange behavior and I'm turning into…"

"Stop." She cut him off. "You are not like him. You are caring and honest, what you do you do out of concern for others, not a desire to control them." She let the earnestness in her words ring out, and she could see some of the tension in his shoulders release.

Nightwing nodded, processing. "Thanks, Star." He took a deep breath, then lightened his tone. "Now, what were you saying about muck-beetles?"

Starfire grinned knowingly, and opened her mouth to speak before thinking better of it. She stared into the square for a moment, and Nightwing could have sworn there was a twinkle in her eye- but of mischief or excitement he couldn't tell. She seemed to settle on a response, but her answer surprised him.

"Nothing." She continued watching the crowd, but her eyes suggested her mind was elsewhere. "It is as it appears: friend Changeling spent the evening with a friend-who-is-a-girl, and friend Raven suitably scolded you for following him."

Nightwing sighed. "Yeah, maybe, Star." He paused, before something nagged at him. "But the little things don't line up. Like, why did Raven tense so much when I asked her about Changeling? Why didn't Changeling access his other side at the beginning of our match this morning, what was it about Raven that triggered it? Is there some connection there from the Adonis thing, like the link between Raven and I from the hallucinogen? Changeling hasn't let beast out since we gave him the Serum, why use it for a sparring match?"

Nightwing hadn't told Starfire about his early-morning conversation with the shapeshifter, just his discovery from reviewing the fight footage, but the more he reflected on it, the more the question of connection came up.

Starfire put her hand on Nightwing's shoulder. "Boyriend Nightwing, is it truly so important to answer every question? These are our friends, two very complicated individuals: we need not understand everything they do, only trust them. Do you understand everything I do?"

Nightwing paused, concerned about the best way to answer. "Well, no, but I wouldn't expect to. You're literally from another planet…"

"And friend Raven is not?" Starfire quipped, humor in her voice. "By my memory, she was raised not only on another planet, but in another dimension, no? And friend Changeling, he is no more strictly human than either Raven or I. He has as much animal DNA as he has human, something our discovery of his uniform this morning would emphasize most dramatically."

Nightwing's nod grew more understanding. "So you're saying I shouldn't expect to understand them, or get so obsessed with figuring things out."

Starfire reached for his hand and interwove his fingers with hers as they looked over the plaza. "Richard," she whispered, "you have a mind of excellence, and a heart of caring deeply for your team. To you, understanding is necessary to care for and protect others. But you need not concern yourself with friends Changeling and Raven, they both have the quirks of personality that they keep to themselves even after so many years on our team, and that is okay. We need not know everything to be their friends, or their family."

The band on stage had finished their last song, and the crowd below was dispersing.

"Thanks, Star," Nightwing released a deep breath and squeezed her hand. "You're right. They're family, and that's what matters." Something caught his eye in the crowd below. "Hold on, Star, there's a pickpocket in the crowd. Mind if I take him in?"

Starfire only smiled. "Of course. I would join you for the passing of the culprit to the men of police, but my glorkfintch should be nearly done, I must remove it from the oven or it will congeal."

Nightwing did an admirable job of not wincing at the thought of what sat unattended in the kitchen. "Alright, see you soon," and jumped off the rooftop in pursuit of the unfortunate thief.

* * *

Starfire took to the air, joy easier to access than normal, even for her. _Boyfriend Nightwing does not see because he does not have all the pieces, _she thought to herself, _but I have seen the Beast twice since the night of Adonis, and it is enough to see the pattern, especially if Nightwing is correct about Changeling using it this morning. _She thought back to the first time, when Slade and Trigon's forces besieged the tower in pursuit of Raven. _The Beast rose again then, to protect Raven, _Starfire mused, _but boyfriend Nightwing could not see through the battle_.

The second time chilled her to think about.

* * *

It was a quiet autumn night in Jump City as she and Cyborg were on patrol. Robin was in Steel City, doing a publicity drive with Titans East when a panicked call came in from Beast Boy, as he was still known then.

"Raven's hit, tripwire shotgun." His voice was sharp but deep, with no room for pleasantries over the comlink. "Have the infirmary ready now, we're coming in." He cut the transmission.

Cyborg, patrolling in the T-car hit the thrusters to prepare the Titan's infirmary, while Starfire flew toward the source of transmission, thinking that she would intercept Beast Boy bringing Raven in and carry her the rest of the way, since she flew faster than any weight-bearing flying animal on Earth. She was almost to the suburbs on the edge of town when a dark blur caught her eye. Streaking down one of the main roads- which was virtually deserted at 3 am- came a green behemoth of fur and fangs. Starfire raced towards it, attempting to identify her friend Raven among the green hair. There, tucked like a football under the creature's left arm, was a bundle of deep blue, likely Raven wrapped in her own cloak. _She looks so small in comparison_, Starfire thought, flying to intercept the incoming creature.

The Beast wasn't having any of that. When Starfire neared, the beast took a massive leap and sailed over her without losing momentum, and continued toward the tower. Starfire could only take off in pursuit, until she realized something that brought her up short. _I'm not catching up. _Indeed, the beast- running on three legs- was virtually soaring down the expressway, leaping over anything in its path, faster than even Starfire could maintain.

She removed her communicator from her hip and called Cyborg, stating only that Raven would be there in three minutes, and took off again in pursuit of her friends. _How does he intend to cross the bay? _

Her question was answered only a minute later, as she watched the beast leap from the street to the top of a mall, then the top of a five-story bank, then a 10-story apartment complex, all without breaking stride or losing momentum, always approaching the bay. The progression led him to the top of a 30-story hotel on the beach.

Starfire watched as the Beast channeled every ounce of momentum and strength in its hindquarter and leapt. Beast and package soared over the bay: and incredible distance but nowhere near enough to reach their island. The Beast then surprised her: as his momentum faded he curled up and rotated. Starfire couldn't see much from where she flew- now gaining- but the next thing she knew the Beast extended, pushing out with its hind legs to send a blue-wrapped Raven soaring toward the island, still unconscious.

Starfire panicked. She redoubled her efforts and the air streaked around her as she approached the sonic barrier, but she knew it wouldn't be enough. The Beast had disappeared, and Raven was seconds away from crashing into the Tower's rooftop at fatal velocity…

And then the Beast was on the rooftop. Spreading its arms wide, it cushioned Raven's landing as the unconscious empath veritably tackled him to the rooftop. Starfire arrived at the rooftop a minute later, Raven and the Beast already gone. She raced to the infirmary, but was brought up short by her green teammate in the hall- now in human form.

"Friend Beast Boy, where is friend Raven?... Friend Beast Boy?"

Beast Boy's eyes were glazed, he appeared half-dead from exhaustion, wobbly on his feet. When he spoke, it was rough, hoarse: "Raven's in the infirmary with Cy. Nothing we can do now, he's got her hooked up and he's taking the buckshot out. Says she looks like we got her here in time."

"Friend Beast Boy, are you the okay?" her concern was evident, frantic worry in each word. "I saw…"

Beast Boy cut her off with an upraised hand, before wobbling and collapsing forward.

Fortunately Starfire was there to catch him. "Sleep, I need sleep," Beast Boy murmured.

Starfire could hear the truth in his voice, so she picked him up and flew to his room. By then he was strong enough to stand. He keyed his door open, then turned to face her. "Star, what you saw… you can't tell anyone. Not even, no, _especially _not Raven"

"But friend Beast…"

"No one. We got her here safely, on time. That's what matters, right?"

She did not understand why, but she knew that this meant a great deal to her teammate and friend. "Yes," she nodded, "so long as friend Raven, and you, are safe and of the 'okay'."

"Thank you, Star." The relief was evident in Beast boy's voice. "If I'm not up when Robin gets back from Steel City in the morning, tell him I'm sleeping in. It's a long way from the forest to where you met me on Main."

It made her sad to accept even this small falsehood, but Starfire nodded. "I understand. Goodnight, friend Beast Boy."

"'Night, Star." And then the door was shut.

* * *

Starfire never broke that agreement, but she couldn't help but think back to it now. _Friend Changeling has always had access to the beast, but I have only seen it when Raven is in dire need: never Robin, never Cyborg, never me or a civilian. _To Starfire, that, and Changeling's secrecy around the whole issue, could mean only one thing: _The beast CARES for Raven. _She didn't know what the story was with Changeling and his friend-who-is-a-girl tonight, but one thing was certain in Starfire's mind. _If the beast cares for Raven, the Changeling does too. _

Starfire may not have Nightwing's keen detective mind, but she understood some things intrinsically that would always baffle the team leader._ If what boyfriend Nightwing has noticed is correct, then friend Raven shares the feelings of affection for friend Changeling, too._

* * *

Raven's red eyes hadn't dissipated when she emerged from the shadows into a room composed almost entirely of computer monitors. She looked about her, searching through the cobbled-together technology for a familiar individual.

Ultimately, she was better off listening for him. "Stupid piece of cludge-drinking horsespit," she heard from the far corner. "Cracking janky wires, giving out in the middle of a compiling session, now I gotta reset the cloud server…"

No sooner did she identify the foot sticking out from under the desk than she had its owner, a skinny bald late-teenager with an unusually large mouth, dangling upside down by a tendril of black energy.

"Woah, hey, what's the meaning of this?" the now-lanky Mikron O'Jeneus, formerly known as Gizmo, babbled as he adjusted to his new situation. "I didn't do nothin', not recently, and not that anyone can prove!"

Raven turned him to face her, stoic façade and hard jaw doing her talking for her. "Gizmo."

"Hey, it's Mikron now, I'm outta the game. I got my own company and everything, I'm legit. Turns out, exposing internet security holes and getting paid to fix them pays a lot more than robbing banks."

Raven didn't say anything, just tightened her psychic grip.

"Ach." He griped. "Okay, okay, so I might leave a backdoor for emergencies later, it's not like anyone without my public key can exploit it! My stuff's unhackable, ask that hunk of junk you call a tech expert: I beat him out for keynote speaker at the tech convention last year, thought he was gonna blow a gasket."

This wasn't getting her anywhere, so Raven decided to up the ante.

The four red eyes certainly seemed to do the trick. "Hey, hey, I'm sorry, okay? Cy's a cool guy, really, I didn't mean anything by it-"

"How do I spoof the gps in my communicator?"

That shut the teenager up. "Wait, what?"

She held the item in question out for his inspection. "There's a gps locator in here, tells the team where I am in case of emergency. I want my privacy, but I don't want anyone to know the signal's false."

"Oh." The challenge drew the young genius to the communicator, and his babbling abated. "This is Cyborg's tech? Well, that's a little more difficult than your average Iphone, but not much." He inspected the plate on the back. "Give me five minutes right-side up, or ten minutes upside down."

Raven snorted without amusement, but righted the former villain and lowered him to the floor. "Do it."

"Sure thing," Mikron turned to his workstation. "Two questions though, why you wanna hide from your team, and what's in it for me?"

There are very few things that can legitimately terrify an arrogant genius who'd made a habit of breaking the law and associating with supervillains as a child, but Raven could think of a few.

Six minutes later, Raven phased out of the old school building Micron was using as his office with a hacked communicator and several babbled, earnest assurances that no one would ever know she was there.

"Glad we could reach an understanding," she quipped to the teenager inside, as a whole wing of the building lit up from the inside, and she faded into the shadows on the ground.

* * *

Several Hours Later:

Changeling slumped against the wall in the hallway, eyes wide as he processed what he'd just read. He hadn't even bothered to clean up the bowl of milk and cereal from the floor as he flipped through the pages of the script, reading every note scribbled in the margins as the magnitude of the situation settled on him.

_This is deep, like, over-my-head deep. _ Changeling acknowledged. _I've been down this road before, and been burned by it. _The fact of the matter was, he'd enjoyed talking with Rose, she'd seemed like a legitimately nice young woman and he was looking forward to working with her… _and now this. _

He thumped his head against the wall. _Damnit, Slade. _

An uncomfortable revelation came to him. _I need reinforcements, and it has to be someone Slade can't see coming. _The Titans were a little short in the "invisible men" department, and he couldn't go to one of the Team- it was clear Slade would figure it out and Rose would pay for it.

It took a minute, but a quick mental scan through his options revealed only one person Changeling could trust in this situation… though it wasn't an option he was keen on exploring.

He keyed open his communicator and switched to a secured encryption line not even Cyborg would be able to monitor- according to Cyborg, at least. _It's Changeling. I need your help: when's the earliest you can get to Jump without absolutely anyone knowing? _

He pressed send, then headed towards the kitchen to get paper towels.

He was just finishing mopping up the spilt milk when his communicator buzzed.

_Two weeks, one if I don't need a cover story. _

Changeling considered, then shook his head. _Two's fine. Text me when you're here, I'll meet up with you. Thanks. _

He didn't get a response back, but he understood. His backup wasn't big on talking.

* * *

Again, everybody, super sorry about the delay. I promise: this story is not over, not by a long shot. I'll be back, more resolute and prolific than ever... but maybe not for a month or two. In the meantime, drop me a PM or review, I live for those and honestly do use them to direct my writing!

-TwistedPremise


	14. Busy Minds

Hello, my glorious readers/reviewers! Yes, this is a full chapter, entirely Raven &amp; Changeling-focused, and ahead of schedule, to boot. Don't expect much more soon, I'll do what I can, but here's something to tide you all over. (Hint: I finally have Slade's plan worked out, and it's epic.) In any case, here's my typical disclaimer: I don't own anything involving the Teen Titans, though if I did "Titan's Go" would never have happened. I may start wearing yellow and red when I go jogging tho, call myself "kid." (JK, I never go jogging.)

As Always, Read and review, I love feedback, especially critical responses, and it does affect my writing!

* * *

Two weeks later…

Reconnaissance was nothing new to the Titans. Part of being a crimefighter was monitoring suspects, and Nightwing had learned from the best before passing his education on to the team. Each Titan had their own distinct styles, however, each suited to their unique strengths. Cyborg monitored targets through street cameras, drones, and cell phone gps, while Changeling would take an unobtrusive form, such as a hawk, mouse, or insect to monitor a suspect, depending on environment. Nightwing was consistently old-school, preferring rooftops and binoculars, perhaps tracers with remote microphones. The rest of the team would have teased him about it too, if he didn't routinely gather intel they'd missed. And nobody argued with his interrogation merits.

Of all the titans, however, Raven was perhaps the best suited for espionage when she set her mind to it. Between merging with shadows and teleportation, she was incredibly difficult to track and identify, especially in the dark spaces unsavory characters tended to prefer. This, however, was only the first level of her ability, the kind she used in the mundane, unpredictable espionage of crime bosses and petty supervillains. To watch over Changeling- it wasn't spying if it was for his own good- under the eye of Slade's assistant and possibly Slade himself, Raven needed to raise her game.

Which was how she currently found herself hovering over the table of a small vegetarian café on East Street, holding a lotus position in midair as she focused on maintaining several spells at once. The first was a challenging one- a charm that rendered her all but invisible to the naked eye. If one had focused on her location they might see a slight shimmer to the air, but this could easily be dismissed by air currents. Nonetheless, the spell wasn't perfect and required almost absolute concentration, so she chose her location near an air vent, maintained her distance, and stayed out of the eye of any cameras, just to be safe.

The second was a spell of silence on herself and her communicator. Changeling's hearing was extraordinary, and even an errant breathe or communicator chirp could betray her presence in the wrong context.

Finally, her conscious effort rested on a spell of hearing- one which allowed her to hear only what took place in a certain area- the corner booth holding her teammate and his dinner companion. Thus far, the conversation was uneventful, if infuriatingly congenial, between Changeling and Ms. Wilson. Raven loosened her jaw again; she'd picked up the habit of grinding her teeth during these times and hadn't figured out why.

Raven could tell the conversation was winding to a close. This was the third time since Raven had taken up secret surveillance that Changeling had met with "Rose," and their behavior had quickly established a pattern. Garfield would dismiss himself from the tower just before dinner, and Raven would wait briefly before retreating to her room to "meditate." Once she'd activated the spoofing signal from Gizmo, Raven would activate her wards- a process which took about five minutes of preparation and incantations- and slip out her window to track her team-mates communicator, if he hadn't already announced his destination. Silent and invisible, Raven would take up a position in whichever restaurant the two had arranged to meet in, monitor their conversation for any signs of trouble, and then follow Rose back to her vehicle afterward, hoping to catch a sign of illegal, suspicious, or otherwise Slade-related activity. Once Raven had followed the girl back to a small motel- the kind that accepted cash and aliases- but refrained from investigating further lest Garfield beat her to the tower and she risk being discovered outside the tower.

The plan was set to change tonight, however. Twice now, Raven had returned to the Tower expecting Changeling to arrive soon after, but found the next morning that the Tower's records reported his arrival no sooner than two or three in the morning.

Tonight, Raven intended to follow the shapeshifter and figure out why.

The dinner plates were empty, and Raven could hear the conversation winding down in the corner booth.

"-so, like I was saying, some minor tweaks to the raptor pack on page ninety-five, and I'd call this baby ready to film!" Changeling exclaimed excitedly, as the waiter approached with the bill.

"Perfect," Rose beamed as she reached for her purse. "And just in time, too. We start filming Saturday."

"Already?!" Changeling exclaimed. "The cast, stage, everything, ready to go?"

"They're finishing some of the sets as we speak," Rose grinned as she handed a company card to the waiter. Changeling had insisted on paying, but Rose insisted that their meals were "on the studio."

"I guess that means I'm done, doesn't it?" Changeling inquired, his question hesitant. Raven picked up at the question. With what they knew of Rose and the secret organization behind the filming, it seemed highly unlikely that the arrangement could be over so quickly, so… easily.

"Possibly, though I'm sure the studio will contact you a few times to get your feedback on proposed changes as filming progresses," Rose conceded. "However, there's still the option to oversee some of the filming, if you're interested..." The way her question trailed off made Raven wonder whether the blonde actually wanted Changeling to accept. _Of course she does,_ Raven chastised herself. _A remote island, with only a crew of actors and staff hand-picked by Slade, and his agent as Changeling's point-of-contact? It's the perfect place to ambush Garfield… _

"Of course," Rose continued, "The studio would increase your retainer considerably, what with the extra time you'd spend traveling and on-set. I know you're busy with your day job, as it is, but perhaps you could make it for the weekends? You'd pick your hours, we'd send a plane to pick you up and drop you off, and I'd love to have your input on training some of the animals…"

_Say "no," Garfield, _ Raven begged in her mind. _This could be over now, you don't need to risk exposing yourself like this: not for her…_ Even as she thought it, though, Raven knew it was futile…

"I'd love to," Changeling replied, his voice betraying no concern. "I'll have to talk to Nightwing about finding times that work, or someone from the network to cover my shifts, but the plane won't be necessary. Between flying and swimming, it's only a two-hour trip between our island and yours, one hour if I get Cy to let me borrow the T-sub."

_Foolish, reckless, idiotic, idealistic… _Raven cursed her green teammate.

"Well then, I'll talk to the director and see what we can do about getting you a trailer." Rose sounded sincerely happy, but then again, she would.

"Perfect," Changeling replied, glancing at his wrist.

Raven snorted at the gesture. _Does it really count if the watch is part of him? How does it even keep time? _

Nonetheless, Changeling apparently saw something that prompted him to action. "Sorry I can't stick around, but I promised to meet a friend and I'm running late."

"Of course," Rose smiled diplomatically. "I'll send you an email once I talk to the director and we'll set up a time for you to come view the filming. We'll make sure it's one of the dino-centric scenes, no point having you come all the way for something irrelevant."

"Thanks," Changeling nodded as he stood and motioned toward the door.

"And Mark," Rose called, causing Changeling to turn. "I don't know if you've had as much fun working on this as I have, but I just wanted to say thanks. For everything."

"You're welcome," Garfield replied, offering a familiar lopsided grin that set Ravens teeth back to grinding. "I'm glad you reached out to me, I look forward to working with you on-set." And with that, he made his way out the door.

Raven watched him as he merged with the crowd on the sidewalk and made his way down the street. She only had a few minutes before she risked losing him in the crowd, but she waited to see what Rose would do. It became clear, however, as the waiter returned with the receipt for her to sign and she leisurely gathered the manuscript and clipped it together that she had no plans to pursue the green Titan, so Raven fazed through the wall behind her into the alley and soared to the rooftops, still invisible, to find out who exactly Garfield had meant when he said he was "meeting a friend."

* * *

Changeling made his way through the bustling streets of downtown, thankful for the slight drizzle and chill in the air. In this part of the country, even the slightest inclement weather prompted long jackets and hats, and with his ability to modify his wardrobe with a though, he blended into the crowd better than he ever could have on a sunny day. His green skin, hair, and pointed ears were hidden beneath a generic-looking tan overcoat with popped collar and an oversized fedora, and if he kept his dead down, the passer-by paid him no notice.

It'd been fifteen minutes since he excused himself from the restaurant, and he was now on the far side of the downtown shopping district. His route had not been the most direct; it was worth the extra time to ensure he wasn't being followed, and the occasional empty street or blind corner allowed him to alter his appearance without garnering attention. Checking his watch again, he pulled an abrupt one-eighty, merging in behind a group of window-shoppers and surveying the street any pursuer would be on. He scanned the rooftops, as well, using his keener-than-human eyesight to look for anomalous shapes, but none presented themselves.

Satisfied, Changeling waiting until his group had passed an alley between a Chinese restaurant and a boutique shop before ducking into it himself, marching halfway in before ducking behind a dumpster. Here, he put the final touches on his subterfuge. Shrinking into a common spider, changeling started up the wall beside him. He made it to the roof before opting for the form of a housefly. He made his way across the adjoining rooftops before dropping down into the alley two blocks over, confident that nobody could have followed the movements of such a small form, even had they followed his sparrow between East and Fifth streets, his rat between the sewer grates of fifth and Cherry, and his human form from Cherry to here.

Changeling preferred to be the hunter, but when the time came, he could be the most elusive prey on the planet.

His precautions appeared to be unnecessary, but there was no reason to take them. He opted for the form of a tabby cat as he slunk under a dumpster, and settled in to wait.

He didn't have to wait long. Two minutes later, at quarter-past the hour precisely, a tall man in a grey jacket entered the alley without fanfare. He turned to the side-door of a closed-down bakery and jiggled the handle. Finding it locked, he stepped to the side and waited.

_There's my cue, _Changeling thought, as he mewed once, then shifted into a mosquito and flew under the seam of the door. Once on the inside, he returned to human form and turned the lock-bolts and stepped back into the shadows. The bakery door opened, the stranger entered, and the door closed behind him.

"Hello Changeling," the man whispered as he raised his head. The bakery was pitch-black, but Garfield could clearly see a pair of eyes. Glowing, bright green eyes. "How can I help?"

* * *

Raven had to hand it to her teammate; when he didn't want to be followed, he did a damn fine job of making sure he wasn't. Twice, she'd lost track of him as she soared over the Jump City streets, both times using her empathy to pick up the trail where he'd lost her. The tax on her energies was incredible; both previous surveillance trips had left her drained and in dire need of a full night's rest (and then some), and this was the longest she'd gone yet.

It was worth it, though, when she caught the flicker of motion of a green housefly buzzing past her on the rooftop between alleys. She knew she'd been close to discovery: only a few feet to the left and changeling would have run smack into her. Her concern dissolved into curiosity and suspicion as she watched a strange man enter the alley Garfield was camped in. When he opened a previously locked door, Raven recognized the maneuver from when Garfield and Starfire had infiltrated a hostage situation two months ago, and she knew that whoever this guy was, he was now alone with Garfield in that abandoned building.

That was unacceptable.

Fully aware that she knew absolutely nothing of what to expect, Raven phased through the ceiling of the bakery, hovering in the space below the second-floor slab and the drop ceiling directly above the pair of presences below her. _Where have I felt this presence before? _She wondered. She was certain she'd never seen the man in the alley before, but his psychic and emotional essence brought up a distinct case of déjà vu. _Perhaps their conversation will help place him, _she thought, as she focused on the room below her…

…Only to realize she couldn't make out any of the words to their conversation. _Stupid hearing charm, _Raven cursed. _Line-of-sight limitation… _She considered phasing through the ceiling tiles into the room below, but had no way of knowing whether the shimmer of her invisibility spell would be detectable to Changeling's enhanced eyesight. _He'd probably smell me, either way, _Raven realized. She didn't consider herself to have a particularly powerful scent, but in a room with so few smells or distractions, she knew Changeling could pick up on even subtle shifts in the air. _Better to keep my distance, monitor emotions, and be ready to move if needed…_

* * *

"-It would be easier to explain the other way," Changeling responded, a sliver of hesitation in his voice.

"Now?"

"Yeah, I'll explain on the way, but right now there's somewhere I need to be." Changeling sounded urgent, and… embarrassed?

If the other man was perturbed by Changeling's vague reply, he didn't show it.

"If you say so," he shrugged as he prepared...

"Wait," Changeling cut him off. "What's about… him?"

"Oh yeah," the stranger replied. "No worries there. He's a squatter, new to town, plastered drunk when I found him- won't remember a thing. Leave him in the alley, I put a couple cards for job-placement companies, soup kitchens, and shelters in his pockets, he'll be better off when he wakes up than how I found him."

Changeling nodded, satisfied. "Okay, go ahead."

* * *

Raven felt something taking place below her. The vaguely familiar presence faded… not like a person dying, but like someone going into deep, withdrawn meditation, and a whole new presence grew to that of a subdued mind: like it was unconscious… _That's it, time to move, _Raven prepared to reveal herself and teleport Garfield out of whatever danger this schizophrenic mind presented when she realized: _Garfield's not nervous. _Indeed, there was nothing in Changeling's emotional state to indicate anything was amiss. _What in the nine circles is going on down there?_

* * *

Changeling reached forward, catching the slumping figure in front of him- the now unconscious stranger. Taking a deep breathe to steady himself, he lowered the man to the ground and walked over to the alley door, keen eyesight requiring no light. He glanced both directions into the alley to ensure no-one was watching, then pulled the unconscious man by his collar out into the alley. Securing the door behind him, Changeling kept low, using the dumpsters as cover as he arranged the soundly sleeping figure against the trash receptacle, positioning a convenient- and empty- beer bottle to give the impression of a freshly passed-out drunk.

_I hope you thought to include an alcohol counselor among the pamphlets, _Changeling thought, as he nodded approvingly at his handiwork. He checked the shadows of the alley- the sun was low enough that most of the alley was cast in them. _Time to head out, _he confirmed, and moments later a green falcon rose straight into the air above the abandoned bakery. Turning east, Changeling set his eyes on the foothills of the mountains outside Jump City.

_So, where are we going, _A voice echoed in his head, _and why the secrecy? _Changeling was relieved- this voice lacked the gravel and aggression he was accustomed to dialoguing with in his mind.

_Okay, _he replied, _there are two sets of secrets I'm going to need you to keep. The first is why I called you: the second is where we're going, and why. That issue is a little more… personal. _

_I get it, _the voice replied. _I'm used to keeping personal secrets, kind of comes with the territory. So, why are we headed out of town? _

The voice Changeling feared made itself known before Garfield could reply. **_That would be because of me, and our host's foolish idea that he can outrun his destiny. _**

Changeling sighed and focused on flying. His head was getting to be a very busy place.

* * *

Raven emerged several minutes later into the shadows of her room, a brief chant releasing the invisibility spell. Instantly a wave of exhaustion broke over her, and she lowered to the bed, slumping back in frustration Her interrogation of the man in the alley revealed nothing: apparently he was a transient from out-of-state, didn't remember how he'd gotten into the alley or even where he'd come from. Once Raven had ensured there was nothing to gleam from her suspect (using the bakery as a convenient interrogation room), she'd dropped him- literally- into the chair at an AA meeting before returning home.

_I lost Changeling after that, and I didn't have the energy to maintain this spell and follow him any longer anyway,_ she acknowledged, frustration tinting her mental voice with a low rumble.

But Raven had a new concern gnawing at her attentions. _The familiarity I sensed could have been a concealed demonic presence, or one of our former villains. _Essences tended to change over time or with significant life experiences, recognizing them could be an inexact science, so with a furrowed brow Raven considered telling Nightwing and the team what she'd learned.

_No, _she decided. _I can't reveal my concerns without exposing my activities, and exposing Garfield and Ro- Ravager. _The disappearing presence worried her, though. _There's only one place for that entity to have gone, _she realized. _There were no portals, no mystic containers, and no bodies left in the bakery. The only place that psychic entity could have gone… was into Changeling._ She summoned one of her tomes on recognizing and expunging foreign entities from a host. _Whatever Changeling's got himself mixed up in, I'm not letting something else possess him, not on my watch. _

If Raven recognized the significance of her phrasing with that thought, she didn't show it.

Deep inside her head, however, two purple and red-cloaked figures grinned to each other, as a yellow-tinted avatar cracked her knuckles and began writing, adding to her library. Elsewhere, green wrestled with grey, slowly but surely establishing dominance.

Raven's mind was getting to be a very busy place.

* * *

Rose Wilson had just finished backing her meager belongings into a suitcase when she heard the unmistakable buzzing of a vibrating cell phone. Tracking the sound to the nightstand of her motel room, she retrieved an older model she'd never seen before.

She didn't need to see the number to know exactly who was calling.

"Yes sir?"

"My child, it's time to execute phase two," the normally cold, clinical monotone carried a hint of satisfaction, though whether that meant he was happy with her performance or there was a dead body at his feet, Rose could never be certain. Sometimes it was both, sometimes neither.

"Yes sir." She repeated, allowing only the slightest ounce of her confusion into her voice. "Are we ahead of schedule?"

Slade Wilson was not a man who smiled often, but on the occasions that he did, he was well aware of the effect his voice had on people. Several men had committed suicide rather than experience what came afterward.

"Yes, Rose," he acknowledged, as he paused the monitor display in front of him. There, directly in front of a concealed thermal-imaging camera he'd personally placed in The Soy Oasis, was a distinctly Raven-shaped heat signature. "We're moving up the time-table."

* * *

A/N: Dun dun DUN! Okay, sorry there's not a lot of action going on here, kind of unavoidable, but really building the drama! Let's watch as "Phase 2" kicks in, we'll see what Slade has in store for our heroes, and just how Rose fits into it. As always, drop me a PM or review, I'd love to hear what you think!

A slightly belated Happy Halloween to all my reviewers,

-TwistedPremise


	15. Lazy mornings

A/N: Two Months. Two freaking months since my last update, and here I am... with a teaser chapter. That's right, it's a short one, just under 1400 words... but I'm back! Hopefully, this will breathe some fresh life into a fanfic community that has seemed (in my estimation) a little dry recently, but in any case here is my promise to you...

1\. I know exactly where this story is going, and how it's going to get there. (and it is going to be legen... wait for it...)

2\. I will finish this story

3\. I will do so before this semester is over.

So, get ready for updates, and lots of them! I'm super excited, because like i said... (dary).

Now, without further ado, I own nothing of the Teen Titans, and if I did Raven would get more love. - TwistedPremise

* * *

The next morning was a familiar scene in Titan's Tower.

Cyborg prepared his bacon, eggs, and pancakes, with plenty to share with Starfire, who sat at the bar with Silky in her lap. Nightwing sat beside her, a tablet with the news in one hand, a cup of steaming black coffee (his second) in the other. The team knew not to expect Changeling before the coffee was cool; the green animorph was the embodiment of a night owl, despite Nightwing frequently bringing up the virtues of the "early bird." Changeling never really appreciated the humor.

All in all, it was a typical morning in the common room. Except….

"Friend Cyborg, have you seen friend Raven?"

The chef checked his wrist. Starfire was right; Raven had normally finished her tea and begun her morning meditations by now. "I dunno, Star, maybe she skipped straight to meditating in her room today?"

"Perhaps," Star seemed unsure, but Cyborg shrugged it off. Raven changed her routine every now and then, this wasn't the first time she skipped breakfast.

"Did you see friend Changeling when you got back from patrol?" Starfire inquired, changing topic with abruptness only Starfire could make sound natural.

"Nah, he was probably back by the time I got in," Cyborg called over his shoulder. "I was tracking down a chop shop by the docks, think some local punks are sending parts across the border to avoid getting caught with stolen VINs." He called over at his distracted leader. He mentally called up the tower door logs to confirm his hypothesis. "Well, what'ya know, green bean was out later than I was. I got back at 2:13, last door activation was 3:35."

"And friend Raven?"

Now Cyborg was confused. "Rae had the night off, remember? She was in her room, didn't even come out for dinner." Again, not something Raven did frequently, but not unheard of when she was particularly enamored with a book or deep into a research project. _Though that has been a little more frequent, recently_, he noted. _Might need to check her vitals, make sure she's not missing out on something health-critical when she skips meals like this. _

The sizzling of bacon returned his attention to his breakfast, and Starfire let the conversation lull. Cyborg made their plates, Starfire drenched hers in mustard, and Cyborg called up an email from Star labs to read on his heads-up display as he ate.

Soon, the door hissed, and Raven drifted into view.

"Oh greatest of mornings to you, friend Raven" Starfire called out, as the boys looked up from their displays, nodded their greetings, and returned to their reading.

"Morning Starfire," Raven returned, making her way to her tea cabinet.

"Friend Raven, are you well this morning?" Starfire allowed a little concern to creep into her voice.

Raven didn't even turn. "Yeah Star, just a little tired. Up late with a research project."

That explained her most unusual behavior or sleeping in, but now Starfire was curious. "Oh Wondrous! Were you perhaps searching for a new novel, or perhaps to make changes to your uniform or-"

"Nothing like that, Star," Raven interjected dismissively. "Just a new meditation technique." There was a pause as Raven processed, during which Starfire held back a grin. _Any second now, friend Raven must be tired if she did not pick up on that immediately…_

"Wait," Raven's tone lost its casual disinterest. "What's wrong with my uniform?"

Starfire grinned, equally sheepish and satisfied. _No girl could have refused that bait, not even one with as little interest in the fashion as friend Raven. _"Nothing," Starfire placated quickly, "your outfit is most wondrous on you."

Raven snorted and turned back to her tea.

"Of course," Starfire picked back up, musing aloud, careful to keep her tone innocent, "It is the only uniform on the team which has not changed since we began the fighting of crime together. Is it not customary for your uniform to change as you do?"

Starfire held back a grin as her empathic friend turned- tea in hand- to appraise her. _But she is not glaring, _Starfire noted, _only curious. _

"Perhaps," Raven conceded, cautiously. "But given that I have no changes to signify, I have no reason to alter my uniform. This outfit holds significance to me from my time in Azarath, it's functional, and I've already established it as my public identity. Changing it would be superfluous." Raven turned back to her tea, confident in her argument. "Where is this coming from, anyway?"

_Perfect, _Starfire almost grinned. "Oh, I was merely doing the wondering. The other day Friend Changeling asked if I knew why you did not keep your white cloak from after the incident with Trigon, and in truth I did not know…"

Starfire waited until Raven was turning towards the group, set to explain, tea in hand, before deciding it was time to strike…

"…He said it was most flattering on you, after all, perhaps you would consider an alternate color scheme?"

The boys were distracted by their books, so Starfire was the only witness to the way Raven froze at the comment. It was brief, surely only a keen eye would have picked up on it, but Starfire had gotten quite skilled at picking up such miniscule cues when studying her best friend all these years and to her it was clear as day. She also noticed that Raven took a deep breath before responding, and clenched her tea cup a hair tighter than was comfortable. _So it's true…_

Raven's voice held a little more firmness than was probably necessary. "My 'color scheme' doesn't work that way. The white is a physical manifestation of a psychic phenomina- the reunification of my disparate psychic components. It's nearly impossible to achieve, and literally impossible to maintain."

Starfire knew that Raven was being intentionally complicated with her word choice- it was a defense mechanism, designed to help her shut down conversations she'd rather not have- but Starfire knew enough about Raven's mind from Changeling and Cyborg's explanation to "get the jist" as they say. _Normally, I would say Raven does not wish to discuss her mind, or the Trigon incident, but Raven specifically did not address friend Changeling in any way, despite my baiting… I need to get her alone if I'm going to get anything more…_

"Well then, perhaps a new style leotard, or a specialty cloak, maybe?" Starfire redirected. "Perhaps a formal uniform for public appearances, like the dinners of charity the Mayor always invites us to?"

Apparently, Nightwing was paying enough attention to have caught that part of their conversation, at least. "Actually," he inserted without looking up from his tablet, "that's not a bad idea. Sooner or later, you're going to have to attend one of those, Star and I can't keep showing up for the rest of you forever."

Starfire flinched internally at the idea that she might end up missing a night of off-duty dancing and well-dressed Nightwing if Raven took their place at a formal dinner, but comforted herself with the idea that given her friend's discomfort with such events, it was unlikely she'd even concede to attend without Starfire present.

Starfire's attention was drawn back to the present by Raven's indignation. "What's wrong with my uniform?"

Starfire rushed to put out the metaphorical fire before it grew. "Nothing, nothing at all! But you do have a winter uniform, no? It is like that, different environments require different uniforms." Of course Starfire herself did not, in fact, require different uniforms in the cold or in space, but the point was a solid one.

And with Starfire making logical arguments- ones backed by her boyfriend and team leader- it was a point well made.

Raven huffed. "Fine-" Starfire couldn't contain a squeal of joy- "but it's a uniform, not a…"

That was all she got before Starfire had her flying out of the room, dragged by her elbow to spend the next hour in Starfire's personal collection of fashion magazines, superhero costume supplier catalogs (what, you think they sewed kevlar themselves?), and even League files on known female villains and their styles (Batman's rogues always had such elegant formal wear).

_Friend Raven will be distracted, uncomfortable, and- most importantly- alone. _Starfire literally giggled. _By the time we're done, I might finally get Boyfriend Nightwing on a date of the doubles!_

* * *

Okay, like I said, short... But at least I'm back, right? Anyway, let me know what you thought of our dear and devious Starfire, I just think she's so cute when she gets sneaky like this...

-TwistedPremise


	16. Raven's fear Of uniforms & feelings

A/N: Wow, 22 Reviews, and so quickly! I felt so loved, I stayed up much later than appropriate to get this new, full chapter done for you guys! I'll be honest, it's probably not one of my better chapters because as a dude I find it easier to write action scenes than girl-talk, (which is basically the entirety of this chapter), but I managed to fit in some more devious Starfire (everyone's favorite, it seems), some emotionally developing Raven, and even some Wise, relationship-counselor Starfire (who knew, right?).

So, without further adieu, 3,200+ words, all related to Teen Titans, a subject and franchise with which I am entirely unaffiliated and devoid of ownership of any kind.

-TwistedPremise

* * *

Raven was in hell. She'd been kidnapped, experimented on for hours, her eyes were throbbing, her head ached in three different places, and there was a demon stabbing her in the side with a pitchfork.

No wait; that was an alien with a fashion magazine.

"Friend Raven," Starfire insisted, I am certain that if we only try one more…"

"Give it up, Starfire," Raven begged. "We've been at this for hours, we missed lunch, and we've gotten nowhere." Raven muttered her mantra for what seemed like the millionth time. She didn't begrudge her friend these occasional day-long bonding experiences, they were just an extension of Starfire's natural exuberance, and if her friend could put up with occasional days of non-contact Raven could put up with a few days of over-contact.

Besides, Star's heart was in the right place, if not her fashion sense.

"But if you would merely consider-"

"I'm not wearing green, Starfire." _And definitely not __**that**__ shade, _she mused, _it's exactly like…_

* * *

It had been a long process, wearing down her prey. Starfire was not a particularly patient girl (waiting on then-Robin notwithstanding) so it was fortunate that she had a legitimate activity she enjoyed to occupy herself- and batter at Raven's defenses- as she prepared herself for what could possibly be the most risky conversation since asking Nightwing about the edibility of Earthly fungi AFTER he'd consumed her Grankmignf.

Starfire had taken three dozen photos of Raven and used Cyborg's app to build a 3-d model of her friend. Then, they'd gone through a small mountain's worth of photographs, feeding options to the tablet and having it show the dresses on Raven's figure. What Raven didn't know was that Starfire was being intentionally difficult- of course friend Raven wouldn't like a dress with seven bows or pink lace- and Starfire already had a dress in mind that she knew friend Raven would love in her own quiet way, but what was the point (or fun) in skipping straight there? Especially when there was something she needed to do in the meantime…

When friend Raven reached up to massage her temples, Starfire knew the time was hot and the iron was striking. She grabbed a picture she'd had her eye on for a while, waving it in front of the camera until the green dress appeared on the mini-Raven on the screen. _It was most difficult to find a formal dress which matched friend Changeling's eyes, but if there was ever one, this is it. _

"But, if you would merely consider-"

"I'm not wearing green, Starfire," she heard her friend say, but it was not her protests which captured Starfire's attention. _Friend Raven sees the color, and she isn't looking away… _

"But it is such a beautiful green, yes?" She prompted, fingers crossing into inexplicable knots for luck.

"Yes…" Raven conceded, distracted by the way the dress complemented her deep violet hair.

"It matches friend Changeling's eyes, does it not?" Starfire dared….

There was a twitch as Raven came to her senses, perhaps noticing the scrutiny she was under. "I- I hadn't noticed," she paused as she instinctively reached for her hood, but caught herself. "The straps are too thin, I could never fight in it, or conceal a leotard underneath. Next option."

_It is of never or now, _Starfire braced herself…

"But I think Friend Changeling would most love to see you in this one."

Raven froze. _Did Starfire just say what I think she said? _

The words rang through her mind in the moment: ""But I think friend Changeling would most love to see you in this one."

Raven took a deep breathe. _If I can find a reasonable excuse to turn down florknargk pudding on her birthday, I can talk my way out of this one…_

Never mind that the dress was starting to look a little better than before…

If Starfire had any question as to her certainty, Raven's lack of response would have dissolved it. Several seconds of silence were not unusual for friend Raven, but rarely was that silence accompanied by such paralyzed stillness. Starfire was about to try prompting a response again, fearful that she might have overplayed her hand, when Raven spoke up.

"I hardly see how Garfield's opinion matters here." Raven seemed especially fascinated with the stacks of magazines in front of her, her face hidden and turned away.

_Friend Raven is playing the dumb, but I know better. I must do the cutting off of her falseness before it becomes an argument. _"Friend Raven, I may not be a detective like boyfriend Nightwing, but I can tell when someone is keeping a secret." She paused for emphasis, letting the assuredness in her voice speak volumes. "Friend Changeling's opinion matters a great deal to you."

Raven opened her mouth to reply, but Starfire cut her off. "You are attracted to him, as more than a friend."

Raven tried once more, able to maintain the appearance of indifference, but only barely. "I don't know what you-"

"Friend Raven, I have spent more time doing the girl-talk with you, more nights interrupting your meditations with tears and ice cream than I have spent even in the presence with my own blood-sister." Starfire paused, switching tactics. _We are both, in a manner, without female family, or other confidants. We have fought, bled, and eaten the pudding of sadness together. I know the emotional weight of carrying affection, not even Raven can carry that inside without bursting. _"I have always been able to be honest with you, perhaps even when you wished I had been less so."

Starfire recalled when she had come flying into Raven's room to discuss her joyous experience with boyfriend Nightwing the first time they had… well, that's not important. What apparently was important was that there were certain topics Raven preferred remain unexplored.

But certainly this was not one of them. "Please, friend Raven, be truthful with me, I know how you feel for friend Changeling, I only wish to be "the confident" for you."

Having said her piece, the alien princess waited with the "breath of bait" for her friend, her best, closest, and most elusive friend to do something Starfire had never seen befor She'd seen her lift mountains with her mind, change forms, battle demons, and save the world (multiple times)… But to the best of Starfire's knowledge, she'd never seen Raven open up about her feelings for a boy. _Oh X'hal, for this one miracle…_

* * *

Raven was trapped.

Only three minutes ago, she'd been begging tor something, anything, to free her from the nightmare of fashion magazines…

_If there's a better example of "be careful what you wish for," _Raven mused, _I don't want to know what it is. _She'd had enough tempting fate today, thank you.

How Star had backed her into a corner so quickly, so unbelievable effectively, was something Raven might never figure out. How could she? Who'd ever suspect cute, innocent Starfire to mastermind a trap capable of boxing in a teleporter? Nonetheless, Raven knew she'd been had.

Surprisingly, though, she wasn't upset, or even embarrassed. Something inside Raven called out for her to surrender, to give in and spill her guts to her enigmatic best friend.

Bizarre as it seemed, Raven wanted to tell Starfire everything. She hadn't realized it, but now that Starfire forced her to consider it, the events of the past three weeks rushed to the surface, and the pressure of keeping it all inside threatened to overwhelm her.

But somehow this trap felt safe, and Raven suspected it was in large part due to the clearly nervous, purple clad Tameranean in front of her…

* * *

"Please, friend Raven, be truthful with me, I know how you feel for friend Changeling, I only wish to be "the confident" for you."

Starfire waited anxiously, hoping beyond hope…

Her intentional slip had the desired effect.

"It's 'confidant,' Starfire," Raven's normal monotone cracked under a small grin, "and I suppose it's only fair, considering your last break up cookies caused me to gain three pounds."

Starfire muffled a squeal, but couldn't keep herself from floating off the ground in boundless joy. (It was a miracle she didn't break through the ceiling, actually.) "Oh, most glorious! Please, you must tell me everything! When did you first know? What do you plan to do? Was it 'the face?' Oh, it MUST have been 'the face'…"

Raven took a deep breath and settled into a comfortable lotus position. "It wasn't 'the face' Star, that only works when I'm sick of getting badgered."

Starfire settled into a floating position, mimicking lying on her stomach, supporting her chin with her hands, and decided not to debate that point. If Raven wanted to deny the power of 'the face,' Starfire would let her. Raven rarely let people "behind the curtains," so Starfire intended to soak in every minute.

"I first noticed something was wrong after the Overload battle. It's complicated, but basically my subconscious was telling me there was an attraction there I hadn't recognized…"

* * *

Starfire tried to restrain herself, she really did, but nonetheless the story Raven intended to finish in five minutes ended up using an hour and a half, a full box of Kleenex (Starfire insisted on hearing Raven's perspective on the memory grove visit), and at least twenty ear-splitting squeals before Starfire was satisfied.

And Raven didn't even tell her about the shower incident…

_Azar, I'm glad that's over, _Raven sighed internally. _I feel like I just went spent ten rounds as the rope when Brave and Fear play tug-of-war. _Nonetheless, she couldn't deny the peace that settled where a knot had resided before. _Go figure, talking to Star's as good as meditation. _

One short vision of herself with pink nails and hair curlers, however, and she decided to write it off as a fluke.

Her mental moment was interrupted suddenly as starfire literally flew by, the tablet in her hands.

"Friend Raven, this is the perfection! The Mr. Mayor of the city has requested the Titan's presence at the city formal in two weeks, and Boyfriend Nightwing was just saying that more than just he and I should attend. You and Changeling can go together, in your new uniform of formal!"

There were so many things wrong with that sentence that Raven didn't know where to start, so she went with the easiest. "Star, we've been looking for hours, remember. I don't have a uniform formal enough for that kind of event, and there's no way we could get one made in time, even if we had a design."

"Not to fear, Friend Raven, I have one more idea where we can find you a design!"

_Why am I not surprised? _Raven sighed internally, turning to her friend. "Star, we've been through every-"

Raven wasn't left speechless often, but this was the third time today.

There, on the screen enthusiastically thrust in front of her face, was an image of herself… but not exactly. The woman on the screen was leaner, with less curve in her lower body, and had wavy black hair with purple highlights. Nonetheless, she made a recognizable Raven look-alike, a trait made even more surprising by her outfit.

The cloak was similar, just longer and with a thicker, more flowing fabric. It graced the floor with the barest hints of contact, and though it maintained her classic peaked hood, Raven could see that it was meant less to hide one's face than to frame it. The major deviation, however was where her usual leotard should have been. Rather than a black, long-sleeved uniform, this woman wore a midnight blue gown, a form-fitting matte bodice with a formal gold belt and a skirt that flowed clear to the floor. In fact, the only thing even slightly risqué about the ensemble was the slit to the dress- when the Raven impostor walked it was clear that the skirt was split on both sides clear up to the high-waisted belt.

"Starfire, that's…. who is that?"

Starfire giggled. "You remember the con of supers which came to Jump city two years ago, yes?"

Raven couldn't forget. The alarm had gone off five times a day, full of bogus claims that some super-villain had gotten into the convention center. The titans would get halfway there, only to receive the call that everything was fine, it was just a fan REALLY wanting to see their favorite Teen heroes in action.

Eventually, Robin gave in and sat on a discussion panel, only to be replaced by Cyborg when every other question from the audience asked about his relationship to Batman.

Robin had a long talk with the mayor, and the convention hadn't returned since.

"Well," Starfire continued, "I had been performing a patrol that weekend when I noticed the most glorious thing! Three women dressed like me were taking photographs in the park! Before, I had believed the earth custom of dressing like a strange person and acting like them to be limited to fictional characters during the night of scary stories and pumpkins, but when I talked to these women, they told me that they traveled to such conventions to dress and act like me!"

Raven could see where this was going.

"Yeah, star, it's called cosplay." Then it clicked in her head. "So, wait, you started looking up cosplay of yourself for costume ideas?"

"Indeed!" Starfire exclaimed. "Some of the outfits were most glorious! I had never seen so many ways to wear purple, though perhaps some were not so appropriate for the fighting of crime…"

Something about the way Starfire tapered off told Raven she didn't want to know what her friend had stumbled across on the internet.

"But then I thought about you!" Starfire picked back up. "You have many of these players of cauz, and to distinguish themselves many have come up with other ideas about your costume!"

Raven would have been insulted that her own fans considered her uniform in need of change, but she couldn't deny that the result was pretty impressive: a custom dress that fit her style, could feature a leotard-like underlayer for crime-fighting, and still looked suitable for a formal occasion.

Raven shook her head. _That woman's a paid model, of course the dress looks good on her. _"Star, I can't pull off that dress…"

And suddenly, the tablet was in her face again.

_Oh, _Raven thought. _That's actually…_

_Hot. _The voice came, unbidden, as her face flushed. There was nothing particularly erotic about seeing the dress on her 3-D doppelganger, but something about it spoke of power, of allure and confidence. _Maybe it's the extra couple inches of hip, or the way the leg comes in flashes instead of my usual leotard, where there's no mystery. _It could have been how the slit made her legs look longer (a definite plus for the shortest member of the Titans), or how the fabric contoured to her curves, providing a modest but clear silhouette beneath the rich fabric of the cloak.

The Raven on the screen was an enchantress, a figure of allure and mystery, and Raven felt the stir of something in her core that insisted that this was her new uniform… for formal occasions that required it, of course. Certainly not for what might happen if she showed it to Changeling...

* * *

Starfire could see it in her eyes. "Oh, glorious! I will contact the Edna, she will most assuredly be able to make this for you!"

Raven vaguely recognized the name of Starfire's go-to fashion designer, one who did runway design only to fund her passion for superhero costumes.

_What was her last name again? Mod? Monde? Something like that. _

"Whatever you say, Star," Raven conceded, slumping back against the dresser. She didn't notice Starfire capturing a picture of the green dress as well, before sending a message to the world-traveling designer.

"Wonderous! Now, you will have something to wear to the dinner of formals with friend Changeling, and we can do the dating of doubles, and the dancing, and-"

"One problem, Starfire," Raven cut in. "Changeling's just a friend."

"But friend Raven, you just-"

"I know, Star. But I'm an empath, remember?" Starfire nodded. "If Garfield felt the same way, I'd know about it." Raven's eyes fell. "I don't know what a relationship would even look like, with my powers and our differences, but if he's not interested then it doesn't matter anyways."

Starfire surprised her, again, by taking her hands and holding them out in front of her. "Friend Raven, do you remember before boyfriend Nightwing and I began the dating? I had made my interest very clear to him, and his desire was clear to everyone, except for him and myself."

"Now, perhaps you cannot feel a desire from friend Changeling because we are often most blind to those things with are closest to us, or perhaps friend Changeling is better at hiding his emotions than you give him credit for, but as you friend I swear on the heart of my hmruckthar that I can see you are not alone in your feelings."

"How-"

"That, I cannot tell you," Starfire cut her off. "Only that you have seen enough in your own mind to know it is the truth, if you are willing to accept it."

Raven nodded once, slowly. "Okay. Okay. So, what do I do now?"

Starfire beamed. "I'm afraid I cannot tell you that, as well. Boyfriend Nightwing and I were very different, I do not think what worked for us will work for you."

Raven sighed in frustration. _I guess that would have been too easy. _

"However," Starfire began, "I can tell you this. Friend Changeling has a heart of much honesty and gentleness, you should be honest and gentle with him, as well."

Raven nodded, wondering when her friend had gotten so wise...

And then her stomach growled.

"Oh, I have been most un-courteous!" Starfire exclaimed, "I shall be right back with tea and snacks, and we can begin planning the hair and makeup for your new uniform!" She flew out the door before Raven could offer to go get the tea herself.

* * *

Raven sat on the edge of the bed and closed her eyes, savoring the silence of the room. For hours, her life had been talking- talking about dresses, talking about Garfield, talking about feelings, and the silence was like water in a desert.

Until the tablet chimed.

Groaning, Raven reached to dismiss whatever alert dared disturbed her peace. The notification was a priority message from Cyborg for Starfire, an article from the online newspaper. What caught Raven's attention, however, was the tagline.

**_CHANGELING'S GOT A GIRLFIREND? _**_Jump's Favorite Shapeshifter Spotted Around Town with Local Zoologist._

Two red eyes narrowed on a green falcon in the distance flying towards the mainland, and before the tablet landed on the mattress, Raven was gone.

* * *

Starfire returned to her room with a cup of hot tea and a bottle of mustard, ready to begin the "girl talk" again, only to find her room empty. Confused, Starfire reached for her still-illuminated tablet, wondering if perhaps Raven left her a message.

**_CHANGELING'S GOT A GIRLFIREND? _**_Jump's Favorite Shapeshifter Spotted Around Town with Local Zoologist._

_Oh, X'hal, _ Starfire swore in her mind, allowing herself this rare act of impiety. Her final advice to friend Raven echoed through her mind in the quiet of her room: "Friend Changeling has a heart of much honesty and gentleness, you should be honest and gentle with him, as well."

Starfire had been in Raven's shoes, when the vile "Kitten" had blackmailed Robin into attending her prom. _So much for 'gentle', _Starfire shook her head, _I only hope friend Changeling encounters friend Raven before friend Raven finds this "Rose Wilson."_

* * *

So? What do you guys think? Too much Girl talk? Too little Changeling? Too OOC? Still wondering how Slade fits into all this? Stay tuned, and leave me a comment with a review! (Every time I get a review, my Raven and Changeling get a little closer together...)

Oh, and if you're wondering where I got my idea for Raven's dress, it's a "ravishing raven cosplay" picture from "fashionably geek" .com. (if you google those words, it should be the fb link.)

Thank you all for your encouragement and loyalty after my hiatus,

-TwistedPremise

P.S. Special thanks to Jimmy1201 for inspiring the not-so-subtle "Incredibles" Easter egg in here. I hope you guys got a kick out of that, I know I did.


	17. Changeling's Interrogation

A/N: Hello, my glorious BB-Rae/TT fan-fic'ers. I am blown away by your support and encouragement, and so I'd like to offer some in return! See, I want to re-invigorate what I've found to be a fanfic carousel- the same stories repeatedly showing up on the front page because nobody's writing new ones. And I think that's a shame. (especially true of the rated M stuff.)

SO, here's what I suggest: If anyone would like to start a story and has written reviews for at least three chapters total of ANY TWO of my stories (including and especially The Slade Contract, but of course Raven's Howl counts) then I promise to review the first chapter of whatever story you write, chapter two as well, if ch. 1 intrigues me.

Can't come up with a good idea for a story? Here are a few ideas I've had, but don't have the time to explore:

1\. CyJinx- specifically, post-KF-entering-the-speedforce/sacrificing himself in the line of duty, Jinx joins a revamped Titans with Cyborg as leader, with Rae&amp;Garfield as a couple, and one non-OC titan or converted villain of your choice. (I'd pick a shamelessly flirty and sarcastically suggestive Argent, but that's just me). Sill 23 and having recovered from losing Wally, Jinx discovers that despite the holo-ring, the chemistry she shared with Cyborg was no illusion...

2\. Failed BB-Rae dates. That's right, humorous/mature one-shots of BB/Rae dates that for whatever reason (villains, forgetfullness, or just bad date ideas in general) don't turn out well for Garfield. Throw in a little fluff, maybe some smut, and let a date or two end well for variety, and you've got a winning formula.

3\. When (Character X) flips sides... What if Cyborg obeyed brother blood and joined the Hive? What if Robin stayed Slade's apprentice? What if Gizmo got tired of being bullied, decided to reform his ways and join the good guys? What if Madame Rouge decided to join the good guys... by impersonating a Titan? Why would they do such a thing, what would it take to make someone flip sides at their most vulnerable moment? (Exception, garfield during the Beast incident. Find another one, that's too easy/overdone).

4\. Raven and Changeling each discover fanfiction about themselves... and become secret BB-Rae shippers who Beta for each other! A couple chapters in, Cyborg notices the shift in web traffic (once things get steamy in the cyber-world) and plays matchmaker...

5\. Garfield and Raven spar. Banter required, innuendo preferred, and destruction absolutely necessary. Of course, there's a natural option for smut, afterward.

So there you have it! Write three reviews total for any two of my stories, send me a PM with your story title, and I pledge to review your writing and provide the best feedback/encouragement I can. Feel free to use any of the above twisted premises, or don't, and let's see some new Fanfic's!

Anyway, here's a lighter chapter before things get heavy, mostly written because I wanted to contrast how savvy Starfire is last chapter compared to her male counterparts... because let's face it, when it comes to relationships, we men are beyond ignorant...

Again, I own nothing related to the TT, not even a plushy.

* * *

It was a few hours after Raven had been sucked out of the room by Starfire's enthusiastic typhoon of energy that Cyborg's web-crawlers alerted him to an important online trend regarding the Titans.

Actually, about one Titan in particular…

"Yo, 'Wing," Cyborg grinned the grin of a cat having discovered a promising new bird's nest. "I know you don't normally read the gossip columns, but there's an article I think you need to see."

Nightwing recognized the sly edge to Cyborg's tone and paused the video of the Titan East's practice he'd been studying. "Yeah? What's the keyword?"

"Oh," Cyborg paused for effect, "try 'Changeling' and 'girlfriend.' You'll find it."

Nightwing snorted, dismissing the 'news' offhandedly. "Oh, they finally caught on to that? Old news, Cy."

Cyborg's human eyebrow shot up in indignation. "Say what? C'mon, man, if the green bean had a real squeeze, he'd have told us by now."

Nightwing's eyes hadn't been visible for years, but it was clear they were rolling. "Cy, Changeling's been making excuses to go see Rose for weeks now. Seriously, they could have just emailed a script back and forth, why bother handing off a physical copy? Then there's the late nights, the way he's been mumbling to himself, his extra training in the gym, and he's left Raven alone ever since he started working with Rose. I haven't seen him bugging her for almost a month now, he's practically been avoiding her."

Cyborg followed the logic, but still didn't understand. "Wait, why Raven?"

Nightwing shrugged. "She's an empath, remember? If you wanted to keep a crush secret, Raven's the last person you want to be around."

"Huh," Cyborg had to agree, it all made sense. "So wait, you knew, AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME?!"

Nightwing just chuckled. "Okay, 'Know' is a little strong. I don't ever 'know' what's in Starfire's cooking, but do I know enough to know you don't want to eat it? Hell yeah. So yeah, I had an idea, but I hadn't confirmed it yet."

Cyborg just shook his head. "You know what that means, though, right?"

"What?"

"We've got three weeks of ribbing to get in, now that the secret's out."

THAT got Nightwing to put the tablet down. "What, exactly, did you have in mind?"

* * *

It had been a late night for Changeling, his longest-lasting stay in the forest yet, but when he woke up in the morning it was clear that his "therapy" sessions weren't helping. _I don't know how long I can keep this up, _he thought to himself, noticing his mental voice was thicker, heavier than normal. He hoped it was morning grogginess.

He checked the clock. _Make that mid-afternoon grogginess. Good thing we didn't have an emergency drill this morning. _

Changeling rolled out of bed, a lofted twin-size (he'd replaced the bunk-beds when his growth spurt over his six month 'vacation' left his legs dangling off the edge) and instinctively landed on his feet. The brief fall left him awake enough to check himself over. _Claws are longer than normal, _Changeling noted,_ but at least the scratches are gone already. _

Hopefully, he had been far enough off the beaten path that nobody would find the fallen sequoia before his claw marks decayed. He snorted. _If a tree falls in the forest and nobody's there to hear it… _

His growling stomach informed him that this was a line of inquiry best pondered over a large, sizzling plate of-

_-quinoa. _ He interrupted himself quickly. _I could really go for something heavy, grainy… _He chose not to ponder where that first line of thought had been leading as he made his way to the common room. _I wonder what everyone else is- _

And then Changeling found himself in an interrogation room.

Oh, it was still the Common Room of the Titans Tower, but you wouldn't have known it at first glance. The room was pitch black, even Changeling's beyond-human eyesight couldn't pick up more than indistinct layers of shadow.

The sole exception was the kitchen counter.

Above the bar hung a single light, a stark conical light fixture that cast a glaring yellow-tinged circle on the counter and one bar stool, a chair clearly waiting for someone. Someone who didn't want to be there.

Someone like Changeling.

All this registered before Changeling's eyes could dilate, but by the time he adjusted to the situation, the door closed behind him with a hiss and click that sounded far more _serious _than Changeling remembered.

Suddenly, there was a hand on his shoulder.

Changeling actually jumped in surprise as he registered the pressure. _There are precisely two people in Jump City who can sneak up on me, _Changeling thought, as he slowly turned his head. _Double-damn his bat-training. _

"Take a seat, Changeling."

Changeling recognized that voice. That was the voice that reduced Mammoth and Gizmo into cowering, blabbering caricatures pointing the finger at each other and confessing everything they'd ever done. _And that was back when he was still dressing like a traffic light. _

The pressure on his shoulder insisted he comply, assured him that escape was impossible. Changeling knew that if we made a move for the door, he'd be face-down on the floor before he could figure out it was locked. _Probably sealed the air vents, too, and the only way to block out the light from the windows is by closing the blast doors. _

Changeling was trapped, unable to do anything but be led to the chair which had been so clearly prepared for him. _Keep it cool, Garfield, _he comforted himself. _I'm sure this is all just a big misunder-_

"You've been keeping secrets, Garfield. Secrets that affect this team."

_Oh crap… _Changeling tried playing dumb. "I- I don't know what you-"

Nightwing slapped manila folder onto the table in front of him, his other hand still gripping tightly onto Changeling's shoulder.

"We know, Changeling." He opened the folder, revealing a collection of photos that looked like he'd developed them in the basement himself. "We've known all along."

Changeling gripped the table's edge with both hands as he looked over the collection. One of him and Rose at the café on Main, another that looked like it had come from a cell phone the last time he'd met with her- at the Vegan Valley on East Street.

"'Wing," he stammered, "this isn't what it looks like…"

"Two coworkers talking over a movie script?" Nightwing taunted, a mock to his voice as he stalked around to the other side of the bar. "No, it certainly isn't." He placed both hands on the tabletop and lowered his face to bring himself directly in front of Changeling's lowered head.

Never before had Changeling been so aware of the fact that he couldn't see Nighwing's eyes. He felt… exposed. "Look, I was going to tell you guys, I really was, but she insisted on secrecy…"

"Oh, I'm sure." Nightwing's voice made it clear it didn't believe a word. "Well, the secret's out, Garfield, and really, I don't know how you expected it to last this long. The excuses to meet in person, the extra workouts, the _late nights_… It's over Garfield. We know, and so does everyone else."

A newspaper hit the table, the headline of the "celebrities" section as clear as day: "**CHANGELING'S GOT A GIRLFRIEND? **Jump's Favorite Shapeshifter Spotted Around Town with Local Zoologist."

It was all Changeling could do to stare dumbly at the page, realization still elusive. "What…?"

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Nightwing straightened and folded his arms, face stern. "Because we do."

It was all Changeling could do to think "We?" when suddenly…

The lights came on, blinding him, and Cyborg had his arms pinned to his sides.

"CONGRATULATIONS!" The two young men shouted in unison, as Changeling's eye's widened in full comprehension as he realized just exactly how wrong he'd been, what his teammates thought, and exactly what position they'd put him in. Hebraced himself for what came next…

As Cyborg picked him up, pinned the shapeshifter to his massive metal chest with one arm, and Changeling heard the whir of servos from just above his head…

"No, Cy, don't-"

But it was too late.

"ROBO-NOOGIE" Cyborg cheered, as he pressed down and gave Changeling a friction burn for the record books.

Changeling didn't even bother shifting- resistance was futile against a Cyborg, after all- and he knew from experience that fighting only ever made it worse.

"Okay, okay, I give! Uncle! Uncle!"

Cyborg's hand stopped. "Now, tell us the truth: how long have you been seeing her?"

"Guys, seriously, it's not like that-"

The whirring started up again.

Changeling's mind flashed to Cliff's earliest lessons on lying.

* * *

"Hand caught in the cookie jar?" The hulking mass of metal stood back-lit in the doorway, casting a shadow on the sore-bottomed young animorph.

Beast Boy just nodded.

Cliff just laughed. "You know, if you'd told him you were actually going for the cookie jar he'd have believed you, and the most you'd have gotten was a scolding. Why you admitted to the catnip is entirely beyond me."

Beast Boy- jokingly called "beast kid" by his adopted uncle- cocked his head in confusion. The truth was, even being so close to the specialty tea had made him a little loopy, he hadn't considered trying to lie.

"Rule number one of keeping secrets, kid," Cliff chuckled. "If you can confess to a small thing they already suspect you of, you can probably keep the big thing a secret." He turned to go.

"Oh, and by the way," the metal man glanced both ways down the hall before whispering. "Rita's moving it to the top shelf, airtight metal can. Pretty sure a monkey could get there, though."

With that, the juggernaught of the Doom Patrol winked conspiratorially and ambled nonchalantly up the hall, leaving his inherently mischevious protégé to plan his next caper.

After his bottom healed, of course.

* * *

_Thank you, Cliff! _Changling sent out a quick well-wishes towards his childhood co-conspirator and overall partner in crime.

"Okay, Okay, we made it official two weeks ago!" Cyborg's arm lifted, and changeling scampered away, gingerly feeling the top of his smoking head.

_Wait, _Changeling realized. _Those pictures were from the paper, Rose's face is all over the media. If they start prying into her, her cover might be in jeapordy! _"In fact, guys, I was, um, just on my way to see her! Yeah, meeting at the park, you know, nice long walk…"

Cyborg's human eyebrow shot up. "Dang, man, didn't you just see her yesterday? You didn't get home until after three, you might want to take it easy before she gets sick of you." It was clear Cyborg wasn't going to stop teasing his "little brother" any time soon.

"What? No, it's not- I mean, yeah, but," Changeling stammered as be backed towards the door. "I just, she's going to the Island to film soon, and I wanna check up on her, and I'llseeyoulater!"

With a hiss of the door, Changeling was gone.

Cyborg and Nightwing just looked at each other. "Ah, young love," Cyborg sighed theatrically. "Poor girl, probably has no idea what she's gotten into."

Nightwing just chuckled, shaking his head and heading towards the door.

"Yo, wait a second 'Wing, where do you think you're going? Cyborg gestured to the black-wrapped furniture around the room that they'd spent several hours covering to enhance the darkness of their interrogation room. "You helped make this mess, you help put it up."

Nightwing picked up the pace. "Sorry Cy, you know the rules. I'm already overdue to run a background check on Changeling's girlfriend, Titan's Policy."

Cyborg sighed in frustration, but by the time he could muster a counter-argument, the team leader was gone. _Typical, _he reflected. _Overpolished acrobat gets the fun job, I get the heavy lifting…_

_Still, not a total loss_, he considered as he called up the video he'd been filming of Changeling's interrogation. _At least I have entertainment while I work._

* * *

A quick text later, and Changeling had a destination: a small diner near Rose's apartment.

The shapeshifter was halfway across the bay when the black shadow materialized from the tower and began pursuit…

* * *

Okay, so, what'cha think? I know, not a lot of plot development, but it's about to get real, really fast, so I felt like a lighter chapter was necessary before the real confrontations begin...

Anyway, don't forget my offer in the A/N at the top, i'd love to see what you guys are capable of writing, and I promise to provide as much support/feedback as I can!

Writers, Go!

-TwistedPremise


	18. Raven's Pursuit

A/N: Well, that was anticlimactic. I mean, I get that it wasn't the most monumental chapter, but 14 reviews and almost no takers on the writing challenge? Man, I guess I'd better just stick with my BB-Rae writing... Oh well.

So, here's a good one for plot development! As many of you guessed, yes, the paper was part of Slade's plan. Also, Raven getting angry is explained a little better in this one, since I left that a little unclear in the two previous chapters. (Jealousy, people, jealousy. It doesn't matter that she knows it's not true, it's still going to spark an emotional response, especially after her convo with Starfire).

I'm really looking forward to next chapter, personally, as we see a lot more of Gar/Beast and Raven's demon side.

So without further ado, my 'name' is TwistedPremise, and I own nothing affiliated with the Teen Titans franchise. Let the story continue.

* * *

Raven flew low, dodging wave peaks and using the glare of the afternoon sun on the water to disguise her pursuit. She hardly noticed her actions as she had one thing on her mind…

_Follow Changeling to Rose, wait for Changeling to leave, then finish this._

Admittedly, this was not her most thoroughly conceived plan in her tenure as a Titan, but she didn't care. _If Rose is working for Slade, I'll get his location from her, knock her unconscious, and sick the Titans on him, if there's anything left when I'm done. If Rose truly is controlled and dependent on some drug, we'll find a cure, or not, but this ends today. _

With that resolution, she set her crimson eyes on the verdant peregrine ahead and redoubled her pursuit.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Raven found herself once again cloaked and studying a diner from above the early dinner rush. To an outside observer, it's ironic how similar this meeting might have seemed to the one that took place in a similar café only yesterday. The same pair sitting in a very similar corner booth, the same invisible Raven spying on their conversation, even the same drink order.

The reality was much different.

Yesterday, the meeting was casual, friendly, yet professional as the movie script rested on the table between them. Raven hovered in protective concern for Changeling's well-being, and intended to remain entirely undetected.

Today, the meeting was rushed, Changeling was clearly flustered, and the manuscript had been replaced by a crumpled newspaper. Raven now hovered not out of concern, but with aggressive intent. Today, she intended to make her presence _known_.

Raven was glad her concealment spell included manipulating light emanating from her as well as around her. The last thing she needed was for the glow of scarlet eyes to alert her prey.

She activated her hearing spell as soon as Garfield sat down, opting for a floating "standing" position over her traditional lotus.

"-ry about the last-minute call," Changing opened as he sat, gesturing to the newspaper on the table. "Thanks for bringing that, too."

"Of course," Rose responded, a calm counterpoint to Garfield's almost twitchy agitation. "I have to admit, I was surprised they figured out my name, but I suppose it was bound to happen eventually. The directors haven't announced your participation yet until they know how much to credit you during filming, so once people got pictures I guess the assumption was only natural."

Raven strained against a release of energy as realization hit. _She's not working for Slade! She's a firefly, attracted to the spotlight of fame around Garfield! _Nightwing had warned them about exactly this several years ago, how they were celebrities, and celebrities attracted attention-seekers like moths to a flame. _The Slade thing was a ruse, _Raven fought to avoid revealing herself in anger. _She probably tipped off reporters to their meetings, gave them her name, she wants her five minutes of fame!_

Changeling, however, didn't seem to follow Raven's logic. "Yeah, well, I just want to make sure you're okay. I mean, if they know who you are, reporters are going to be looking into you, and I want to make sure you're okay with that kind of scrutiny…"

_He still believes in the Slade cover-story, _Raven's forehead creased in frustration. _Of course, it's Garfield. Stupid, trusting, always looking for the good side…_

Rose just waved him off. "Oh don't worry, I can handle myself with press. We do a training on the media when we sign on for the movie."

Changeling still seemed wary. "Okay, if you're sure. In any case, reporters usually gather after a crime bust, and we're due for some baddie to poke his head out any day now, so I'll use the chance to set the record straight."

It was Rose's turn to get anxious. "Mark, you can't tell them about the movie yet, they're planning the reveal for the trailer-"

"I'm not going to mention anything specific," Changeling interrupted. "Just that we're working on a joint project, strictly a business arrangement, that my line of work isn't really suitable for… what's wrong?"

Rose was wringing her hands, clearly biting her lip. Raven's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Well, you know," Rose's voice was shy, "I've really enjoyed working with you, and I was thinking, you know… if you want to… maybe we could give it a shot?

Changeling sat, stunned, while three blocks away a whole row of car alarms went off.

Rose continued, bolder. "I mean, obviously you've got your job and I've got mine, but I really would like to keep hanging out with you, Mark, and if you're going to come visit at the filming you could always stay with me-"

Raven was half a second from tearing through the restaurant when Changeling cut Rose off with a raised hand.

"Rose, I'm flattered, really. And I have enjoyed working with you..."

Rose could only sit, stunned, as the other shoe dropped.

"But I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this off."

"But, I don't understand, why-"

"Look, you're a great girl, really, but…." Garfield sighed deeply. "I'm just not in a place for that, you know?" He looked up pleadingly. "Between the risks of my job, the lifestyle of chasing bad guys, the media craze, I'm just not in a good part of life for that right now." He stood to leave. "Thank you for the offer to work with filming, but I think it's best I end my participation here. Please give your boss my regards." Changeling was turned to leave when Rose whispered-

"It's Raven, isn't it?"

For a moment, Raven believed she had mis-heard, except for Changeling's reaction.

Garfield stilled, then turned back. "I'm sorry?"

Rose's face was shielded by her hair, her face turned down towards her lap. "I can hear it in your voice. When you talk about your team-mates, you either don't talk about her or you can't stop. You get this loopy look in your eyes when she comes up. You like her, don't you?"

Changeling stammered a response. "What… how did you-"

"I just don't understand how I could lose to a WITCH!" Rose's tone shifted to such animosity with that last word that even Raven was taken aback.

In the silence that echoed, however, Rose made the mistake of looking at Changeling and her eyes widened in horror. He stood face down, quivering, with both hands wrapped around the backrest of his chair.

Raven heard the wood splinter.

When Changeling spoke, his voice was different. A deep, gravelly rumble spoken with the powerful, icy rage that could only come through clenched teeth. Sharp, carnivorous teeth.

"**DON'T. EVER. USE THAT WORD IN MY PRESENCE AGAIN."**

"Mark, I-"

"**RAVEN HAS DONE MORE FOR HUMANITY, THIS CITY, AND ME THEN YOU WILL EVER UNDERSTAND, AND IF I HEAR YOU INSULT HER LIKE THAT AGAIN YOU WILL WISH I'D LEFT YOU IN THAT HOTEL TO BURN."**

And then he was gone, simply vanished into thin air as Rose Wilson sat petrified in her chair and the rest of the restaurant was left to wonder what the hell they had just witnessed. And why the room suddenly felt colder.

For Raven, any thought of pursuing Rose was gone. _I have to go after Garfield. _

She wasn't sure when it was that her scarlet eyes had faded, only that there was no way in the nine circles of torment that she'd leave the shapeshifter alone after the turmoil her empathic senses had picked up across the room.

As she opened up those senses further and found him making exceptional time for the mountains around Jump City, one thought occurred to her: _When she asked about me, he didn't deny it…_

* * *

Rose Wilson sat, maintaining her frozen posture for a good three minutes while the waitress approached, offered her a refill, and left. When she determined that she'd waited long enough, she relaxed her widened eyes and drew a cell phone from her purse.

It never took him long to answer.

"Was it enough?" She asked, ignoring the not-so-subtle glances from the other patrons- who had clearly recognized Changeling and herself from the morning paper.

"Indeed," the cold voice replied. "She's gone, off chasing him down, so by my estimate we have 76 minutes to prepare. I will send you the coordinates for the confrontation point, your suit is in your trunk. Drop the car on the way."

"Yes sir." She wanted to end the call, but curiosity nagged at the back of her mind. "If I may ask, why the newspaper and the doe-eyed act? How did you know-"

"That it would bring the girl as well?" Slade cut her off. "I've spent a long time analyzing this particular target, Rose, and I have particular insight behind her façade. I know what buttons to press. She lives and dies by emotions, perhaps more so than the Tameranean. We simply needed to activate the right ones."

Rose nodded. "Jealousy."

"Precisely. Not the most logical of emotions, but easily one of the most predictable." Slade's voice held a cool, calculative tone that made her wonder just how he learned to manipulate emotions if he so rarely exhibited them himself.

He continued, "Jealousy has drawn her out, hope has sent her chasing after him." He paused. "She's smitten with the shapeshifter, and so despair will destroy her. It's a law of the world, Rose: it's always the things we love most that destroy us."

The line went dead, and Rose pocketed the device. A flash of prescience hit her then, a vision of darkness expanding to cover Jump City, then collapsing in on itself. She didn't see anything else, only felt a sense of loss, and she knew that Slade had bigger plans than he'd made known even to her.

* * *

She watched from the corner of her eye as Rose snapped out of a daze and placed a twenty on the table- a generous tip for two drinks- and stood to leave.

In doing so, however, Rose failed to notice that her purse strap had wrapped itself around her table leg, and the contents of her purse- only a few essentials- spilled across the floor. When Rose knelt to pick them up, the young woman made her move.

* * *

The young woman from the next table over knelt to assist her, and for a moment Rose glanced up at her face, into her bright, almost glowing green eyes….

Then she blinked, and the woman's eyes were brown. _Strange, _Rose wondered as she gathered the last of her belongings and excused herself, leaving the confused-looking woman behind in a hurry.

By the time her phone chimed with her destination coordinates she was halfway to her car and a dull pressure had settled in the back of her mind. _Strange, I just had a dose this morning, _Rose thought, as she settled on where to dump her car to avoid detection.

As always, however, any concerns were swept away in light of obeying her orders. Rose sighed, _Sometimes I don't know how much of it is the drug anymore, and how much is me. I'm so used to obeying I can't remember the last time I resisted… I just hope he doesn't tell me to kill Mark tonight, I haven't killed anyone I actually liked before._

It was the strangest feeling, but even as she thought that, something inside of her insisted that it wouldn't let that happen...

* * *

Meanwhile, Changeling raced out to the foothills with a pounding in his head he couldn't quell. _I hope the transfer worked, there wasn't a lot of chance to drop him off when Rose had her head down…_

**Forget him, **the voice roared. **We should return to the Tower, claim what is ours-**

_NO! _ Changeling shouted internally, forcing down the tide that threatened to rise and overtake him. _I am still the Alpha, I am the master, and you will NOT control me. You have your territory and there you may hunt and run to your heart's consent, but I am NOT GIVING IN!_

**You fool, **the voice admonished, **you fear hurting her, but she is the only one capable of enduring, perhaps even surpassing, our own desires. You fear her rejection, but we need not receive permission to-**

_I know EXACTLY what you think we don't need permission to do, _Changeling hissed back in disgust. _And that's why you answer to me, and I'm not letting you anywhere near her. _

**And what if we had permission? **

That brought Changeling up short, he actually faltered in stride, shifting from a great dane to a leapord for stability. _If Raven gave us permission, if she were to reciprocate…._

He shook his head. _I'm not playing hypotheticals with you. Hunt, run, howl at the moon, whatever instincts you need to satisfy, but stay in your territory, and leave humans out of it. Understand? _

A dissatisfied but acquiescent growl was his only reply.

_It's getting worse, _Changeling thought to himself, his conversation partner having receded for the moment. _All it took was Rose mentioning Raven, and I'm all fired up again._

His blood chilled as a thought occurred to him. _If I can't get this under control, I might have to leave the Titans… for good. _

* * *

Changeling never saw the blue-cloaked figure half a mile behind him. _I've never felt Gar is this kind of turmoil, _Raven noted. _This goes deeper than some insult in a café, we've dealt with public slander before and it never did anything like this… _

She was concerned for Garfield, but resigned to stay hidden until she knew more. _This is my chance to figure out where he's been disappearing to all these nights. _

Changeling had been keeping secrets, and while Raven was not one to judge, Starfire had taught her this morning that it was that the people who kept the deepest secrets that needed a safe place to release them the most.

_And if Garfield has taught me anything, _she mused, _it's that the walls we put up need someone actively chipping away at them from the outside, lest we find ourselves boxed in. _

But Raven was new at this role, and though she didn't know it, cutting away at personal barriers was a risky undertaking. After all, one never knew when the knife might cut both ways. Or could easily slip, and pierce the heart.

* * *

A/N: Okay, what'ya think? Our mysterious "reinforcements" a little clearer now? Yes, I know I haven't used a name yet, consider it a thinly-concealed surprise for the uninitiated. And yes, for those who say "it sounds like _, but the powers are _slightly _tweaked," yes, I know, I'm taking artistic license. Kind of the same as my version of Raven's mindscape, or Changeling's Uniform. If there's room for interpretation, I'm going to use it to make a better story. Hope you don't mind.

Anyway, here's to hoping for reviews! At this stage in the story, I could use all the feedback I can get!

-TwistedPremise


	19. In the Forest- Primals

A/N: Here it is... The one you've all been waiting for. I have to say, I don't know if it will do the hype justice... I've been building up so long I worry it will disappoint people now that we're finally here...

But what's done is done, so here goes nothing...

-TwistedPremise.

P.S. It's all somebody else's property, I just play with the toys.

* * *

Raven watched from downwind, sheltered in the crook of a tree as Changeling finally reverted to human form.

She'd watched him for over half an hour as he unknowingly led her out of the city, past the suburbs, and deep into the forested hills at the very base of Jump Peak, the signature mountain outside the city of same name. It was only at a seemingly random point far away from any hiking trail or settlement of any kind that he finally left animal form and stopped to catch his breath.

_I've never seen him run so long, in so many forms, _Raven stared in amazement. No matter what form, mostly canine and feline, though occasionally avian, Changeling had traveled with an intensity and focus she'd only ever seen in Nightwing… back when Slade had been threatening the Titans. _Is that what this is? _She wondered. _Has Slade gotten to Garfield, too? _

She dismissed the idea. _No, this turmoil is personal... but what? _

Changeling stood, breath steaming the air as he basked in a ray of moonlight. Raven couldn't see well, but it was clear his eyes were closed, his head raised, arms spread as he waited….

And then, he shifted.

In an instant, Garfield was gone. Where before had stood a lean, muscular six-foot statue of green skin and conflicted mind now stood a ten-foot construct of fangs and fur. Deep green hair covered most of its body, a mane cascading from its head between its shoulder blades. Its face was neither human nor ape, nor even canine or feline, it was a strong, wide jaw of pointed teeth framed by deep canines.

_The Beast, _Raven realized.

Raven didn't remember seeing it much the first time, she'd been unconscious for most of that incident, but she knew that something was different this time around.

If anything, the beast seemed at once more animal… and more human.

It did not roar, did not drool or do much at all, really. It stood, exactly as Changeling had, basking in the chilled air and moonlight. A low, rolling growl of satisfaction emanated from deep within its chest.

Then suddenly, it moved.

Raven watched in amazement as the Beast left the ground and didn't return. It pushed off tree branches and trunks, bounding from tree to tree almost too fast to follow. Raven watched it disappear into the woods, struck by the power of its movements. _Garfield's power, _she realized. _Power he contains, controls every day…_

She shook herself, realizing that if she didn't take up pursuit she'd lose her friend in the forest.

Five minutes later, Raven was getting winded. _I get that Changeling's a lot better suited to the forest than I am, but this is like nothing I've ever seen. _She could barely keep up with the bounding form ahead of her, who despite its size and power moved with a quietness that she couldn't help but envy. _This is his element, his natural environment. Garfield comes out here to let loose…_

The silence ahead startled her out of her reverie, and Raven dodged between trees- unwilling to rise above the canopy lest she risk being seen-

-and ducked back behind an oak as she found him.

The Beast stood in a small clearing, its back to her as it stared at something on the other side.

Raven couldn't help the feeling that she knew this place-

-and then the beast crouched, and she knew why.

* * *

There, on the other side of the clearing, was a blood-stained elm.

_This is where… where I was shot. _The realization brought up a hundred other questions. _Why would he come back here? Why is the Beast back? Does this have something to do with Rose? _

The Beast shuffled on four legs toward the tree, claws churning the dirt and upending buckshot from beneath the surface. He raised a front claw and traced the buckshot pattern on the broad tree that had absorbed much of the shotgun's brunt- except for where Raven had absorbed it instead. The holes were old, but the missing bark spoke the story of what had nearly transpired over a year and a half ago.

The Beast reached the darkened bark where Raven had pressed herself, trying to stand, as the blood leaked from innumerable wounds. He brought his face up to the stain, closed his eyes, and breathed deeply through its nose, absorbing what little scent remained…

Then it through its head back and **howled.**

* * *

Not graced with full languages, most animals made due with whatever it took to get their point across, even if it meant that meanings overlapped. The grey wolf was no exception. The howl that called a pack to hunt also signaled the end of a hunt- the summoning of those too weak, young, or old to pursue prey to join in the spoils of a successful kill. Either way, the meaning was the same: food, come and get it.

Along a similar vein, one howl served two purposes to wolves when communicating with mates. To them, and many such monogamous species, a call to mate was the same as an expression of love. One howl could call one's mate to begin producing a new litter, or simply express the sensation of missing them while on a long hunt and the desire to return to them.

Either way, they didn't much differentiate: a call expressing affection and reassurance to their mate, or a call to mate, they sounded the same and often carried both messages at once.

As the Beast howled tonight, replicating a howl from many moons ago, it- he- was particularly aware of his message tonight. **_Mate of my desire, I cannot come to you as I once did, when I called out my affection to you and promised that I would be there in your time of need. Hear, Mate of my desire, hear that I was faithful then, and that my desire and promise remain. _**

The beast howled until the air had been exhausted from his lungs and his chest ached, and when he was finished his profession rang through the forest and hills, echoing until it seemed it would never disperse.

And then the wind shifted…

* * *

Senses are a strange thing. Sometimes they lie to us, convince us a mirage is in fact an oasis. Sometimes they tell us things that make no sense yet we can trust them, because we know what they tell us to be true even when we can't explain it. And while most of us are limited to our five senses, Raven was a rare being, born with an empathic sense which gave her insight to the emotional state of anyone and everyone around her.

And right now, it was telling her something incredible.

It was telling her a story of desire. A story of passion and fear and determination. It was screaming of panic, roaring in outrage, and silently moving heaven and earth in sheer resolve. It was panting with lust, it was bursting with sacrifice and devotion.

Beneath and above it all, however, it was pulsing with a beating heart of love.

Raven flashed back to her mental convergence only a few weeks ago, when Affection had presented her case for waiting. She'd listened to this howl then, remembering it echoing over the hills when she'd called him for help, when she'd been too far away to feel the story behind the call.

She flashed back to the conversation-

* * *

Affection spoke up. "Cyborg says we were at the infirmary less than eight minutes after we made that call. We were at least 30 miles away from the tower, and somehow Garfield got our message, found us, and got us to the infirmary in seven minutes." She paused to stare at Reason. "Now tell me, what animal could carry us that far, that fast?"

"None," Raven cut in. "He must have used the T-ship."

Reason shook her head. "No, the jet takes two minutes to warm up, and was still at the Tower. But there isn't an animal in the world that could traverse that distance that quickly…" Her eyes widened in realization. "Unless, Garfield accessed the Beast."

The other emoticlones sat back at the notion. "Changeling never uses the Beast," Anger took up the argument. "He hasn't since…"

"Since our life was in danger from Adonis" Brave whispered.

The table fell silent again. "Okay," Reason conceded, "let's say that is the case. Beast Boy accessed the Beast again to save us a year and a half ago, and that that establishes a pattern." She paused. "I don't see what that has to do with…"

* * *

Except Raven saw now. _Garfield… he loves me, and if the Beast is part of him, it does too… It protected me from Adonis, it saved me eighteen months ago. And now it's here…_

Raven was suddenly aware of exactly how personal a moment she'd intruded upon.

She resolved to leave, just as the wind shifted…. And Raven realized that in her pursuit of Changeling, she'd ended up upwind of the Beast.

_Oh, Azar…_

* * *

The Beast twitched as the wind revealed the presence of a surprise visitor behind him.

_There are precisely two people in Jump City who can sneak up on me, _the Beast thought, as Changeling panicked in the back of their mind. _And only one of them smells of herbs and brimstone. _

In one motion, the Beast turned and lunged, growling in anger at his territory having been invaded, yet filled with hopeful anticipation. **_She heard…_**

* * *

The Beast moved too fast for Raven to react. One second she was watching him across the clearing, the next she was flat on her back, pinned beneath its massive weight. A low growl rumbled from its chest as it brought its face in front of hers, its massive paws resting on her limbs.

She'd never realize how _massive_ the beast was before.

A quizzical grunt brought her eyes away from its massive expanse of shaggy pelt and up to its eyes. The Beast was just looking at her, head tilted to one side. It was hard to tell what expression resided on his strong, chiseled face, but his eyes spoke of confusion and frustration.

_He's trying to communicate, _Raven realized. _But I don't speak… whatever language it does…_

Raven considered her options. She could fight her way out, stun the beast and escape back to Titan's tower. She didn't much care for that option. _I came here to help Garfield, _she reasoned, _not to fight him. If he's struggling with control, I don't want to lead him back to the city. _Besides, she wasn't sure she could guarantee the outcome of fighting the Beast in his natural environment.

She could teleport away, but that faced similar issues. If Garfield shared the Beast's memories, she'd only make the situation worse by disappearing after betraying his trust and following him out here.

There was another option, but Raven knew it was a long shot, and a method of last resort.

Nonetheless, she felt the power warm her core as it rose to the surface, ready to be called on.

The Beast growled impatiently, teeth exposed as it realized the problem.

_I can't let this get out of hand, _Raven searched frantically for another way… but there wasn't one. _Azar, I hope this works…._

And much like Raven had witnessed with Garfield standing in the moonlight, Raven let go and _shifted…_

* * *

The Beast was getting frustrated. **_She is here, and yet, she does not respond. Why is she here, if not to respond? _**The Beast could feel Garfield fighting to regain control, to phase back to human form where the Beast would be but a shadow of its current state. **No, **he growled at his master, **we are in my territory, territory you gave me to run free. **

_I also said you can't do anything without permission-_

**You said I couldn't act on our desire without permission. I will not. But she has entered my land, answered our call, and I will not let her leave without explaining herself.**

Garfield did not answer, placated by his assurances, and the Beast returned his attention to his trapped companion…

Just in time to watch her shift.

* * *

It was a common misconception that Raven's demonic aspect was controlled solely by anger, or was somehow detached from her larger psyche. The fact is that Raven's demonic heritage simply left her more susceptible to experiencing certain emotions: namely, the "darker" ones like rage, lust, and pride. And when she did feel them, she felt them more strongly than most humans.

Now, this wouldn't be a problem, except that her heritage also left her with access to incredible amounts of psychic power. Since her powers were controlled by will, Raven controlled this power so long as she kept an even mental state.

The challenge came with peaks of emotion, which themselves came with subconscious desires. A spike of uncontrolled fear could cause her powers to lash out at what startled her. A flash of anger, or envy, similar result. These 'subconscious wills" were too fleeting and indistinct most of the time to do anything specific, normally only causing a flux of energy which damaged nearby objects, but were generally not cataclysmically dangerous.

The trouble came when Raven allowed herself to feel darker emotions for sustained periods.

Even to humans, emotions are powerful. They often override logic, causing even level-headed people to do impulsive things. When emotions fester, or are nurtured, they don't "take over" per se, but they do dramatically alter human behavior.

The same was true with Raven. Tenfold.

The classic example is that of the incident with Dr. Light. During this time, Raven was under the emotional influence of her father, and allowed herself to experience and act on her Anger. Thought the lapse lasted only 15 seconds, it revealed the dramatic nature of such an episode. Raven was still herself, still in control, but allowed herself to do things which she would normally never consider, because she allowed herself to act on her baser emotional impulses.

As loathe as she was to do so, she opened herself up to them again now, knowing that it could very likely be the only way to communicate with a being of baser instinct like the Beast.

Raven was not possessed, nor was she out of control. The best comparison may have been that she was inebriated, losing many of the restrictions she put around herself, open to more of her basic, demonic-heritage-enhanced emotional impulses.

When she was angry, she was a mean drunk. Right now, she didn't know what she was going to be.

She hoped it wasn't what she suspected…

* * *

The Beast watched in fascination as darkness flowed around her like mist, seeping from the folds of her cloak to cover her limbs and pool around and over her. The Beast couldn't see through it, only feel the coldness where it covered his paws and sent tendrils up its arms.

Her legs dissolved out from under him as the darkness grew in length. It watched as the writhing mass seemed to tense underneath him.

And then it flexed.

The Beast found itself flying across the clearing, crashing into a sequoia hard enough to stick in place, feet off the ground. He closed his eyes, reveling in the rush.

He growled in satisfaction. **Finally. **He recognized a being of nature when he met one, though clearly this was not of this realm. **_This is a being of inner nature, "demonic" nature. _**This was the creature that called out to the Beast from within his Desired. **_Changeling desires the Raven, but her Demon calls to his Beast. This is her baser instinct, perhaps…_**

He growled low, eyes still closed. **You heard me. **

A familiar voice answered back, though it was tinged with a new, sultry tone. "How could I not?" Her voice was Raven's, and yet it carried another layer, an unnatural sharp-tinted overlay that spoke of magic and power. And seduction.

The Beast opened his eyes, taking in the surprising form in front of him. He grinned. **_This is going to be fun._**

* * *

In front of him stood a Raven, but not the one he'd just been thrown from. She stood precisely the same height, had the same skin tone, same hair, and wore the same blue cloak, but there ended the similarities.

This Raven wore her cloak slung off one shoulder, and stood with her hip cocked to one side, hands on her hips. With her cloak held away by her posture, it was clear that this was far from her usual leotard. The traditional one-piece had been replaced by a knee-length skirt supported by her customary jeweled belt. The difference was that this skirt was composed of two rectangular strips of fabric, one in the front, one in the back, and the two pieces maintained no connection to each other besides the belt which held them loosely in place.

Her top, which was normally the most conservative portion of her uniform, was more recognizable, though distinctly less conservative. It looked as though a seamstress had taken Raven's usual leotard and decided all material on her shoulders and below her bust was unnecessary, save for hourglass-shaped connection between the bust and the belt over her stomach, and the tight, short collar that held the whole thing up.

This was the outfit of a Raven who was tired of being constrained, and was ready to revel in her freedom. She appraised the Beast with tight, glowing red eyes and a smirk, hood down.

"Well, aren't you something else…" She remarked, sounding at once both confident and impressed.

The Beast pulled himself from the tree, cracking the trunk and bringing splinters out with him. He paid them no mind.

He took a deep whiff of the scent carried over by the breeze, then sobered.

In a blink, he stood over her, bending down to exhale the breath he'd just taken directly into her face.

She didn't even flinch.

**You are our desired, and yet you are not. Who are you, and why have you entered my territory? **The Beast was no fool, it did not do well to cede power outright to a dominant type like the one before him. **_I am the alpha here, I will be recognized. _**

She just looked up at him. "Would you believe I felt like taking a walk through the woods?" He just snorted, hot breath wafting over her.

Red eyes would have rolled, if they could have. "I came here for you, obviously."

He growled. **You heard my call. **

"No. Well, yes, but I was already here for that." She turned to walk out from under his shadow.

He moved into her way. **Then you were hunting me. Why?**

She sighed, and phased into the ground. Her voice called out behind him. "Catch me and you'll find out."

And then she took off, dodging through the trees, her cloak trailing behind her.

The Beast rolled his shoulders and grinned. **_Every good hunt requires a chase. _**

And then the chase was on.

* * *

In all fairness, his quarry was good. Quick, agile, left minimal trail to follow.

But the Beast was home in these woods, and he was the best there was. A snapped twig here, a whiff of scent there, and before she knew it he was running alongside her.

He leapt, tackling her to the ground, rolling to pin her beneath himself once again. The position would almost be considered sexual, under different circumstances.

"Oh, Changeling, I didn't know you were so aggressive…." **_Or perhaps these circumstances…_**

He was not about to be distracted, however. **Speak. How did you find us here, and for what reason? **

"Well, I guess you earned it," she teased, tugging at her arms, since he had her wrists pinned above her head. As intent as he was at maintaining the Alpha-role, he could not help but observe how this new uniform flashed skin Raven never let be seen, feel how she squirmed under him, and he was tempted to abandon his interrogation there and now.

The temptation vanished when she answered. "I followed you from the café."

**_With the Slade-spawn, _**he realized, returning to the matter at hand. **How long have you watched us?**

"Sorry, one answer at a time." She teased, as he felt her dissolve into the soil beneath him, straight through his claws. "Come and get me."

The Beast just growled, a glint in his eyes.

* * *

Five minutes later, Raven stopped. She'd lost the Beast two minutes ago after she'd flown over the creek to avoid giving of a scent trail. _Too effective, I guess-_

A sudden gust of wind blew by, and suddenly she was aware of the chilled air around her.

Red eyes looked down on her own form. _Clever bas-_

A short growl emanated from behind her. **Missing something? **

She turned, leveling a glare that could literally kill a weaker man. "Give me back my cloak."

His response was to hold out the garment in question. **How long have you watched us? **

She licked her lips and grinned. "Long enough… you're not so bad on the eyes."

**You watched us with the Slade-spawn… just today, or before? **

With her cloak hostage, there really wasn't a choice. "Since the first meeting. I read the script when you stashed it in the mailbox."

White eyes widened, then narrowed. **In that case, it is your turn to chase. **The Beast placed her cloak between its mighty jaws and took off with a bound that left gouges in the ground.

The Beast ran, knowing he had limited time, rejoicing in the thrill of the chase. The moon was full, the air was crisp, and with every step he breathed in her scent. The night was right.

A black hand emerged from a shadow along his path, and while he dodged the talons, he knew his success was temporary. Surely enough, another two reached out for him directly ahead, and he jumped up over the canopy to clear them.

He crashed down and resumed his bounding gait without faltering, intent on his destination, but the forest was filled with shadows, and it seemed each one had come to life under his competitor's spell. He ducked, dodged, leapt, dove, even rebounded backwards and selected another path.

Every instinct, every sense he possessed came alive, and he found himself only three leaps from his destination when a black wall arose before him.

The Beast grunted and redoubled his speed. One leap away, and the wall seemed infinite in every direction…

But he had no intention of going _around. _

With a mighty heave of his hind-quarters, he lowered his head and lead with a massive shoulder, crashing into the wall with every ounce of power he could generate…

The ebony obstruction shattered, dissolving into mist as he landed, rolling, and crouched.

There she was, in the clearing, waiting for him.

He grinned, panting, as he lowered his head and placed the garment on the ground before him.

**Come and take it.**

* * *

Raven watched as the Beast backed away from the cloak until it rested exactly in the middle between them.

She grinned. _Foreplay's over, time to get dirty…_

She could have simply called the cloak to herself, but she wanted to _enjoy _this.

* * *

The two circled the cloak, never looking away from each other.

**You watched us from the beginning, **The Beast called across the clearing, **why?**

A stripe of black flew across the field, and he jumped to clear it, lunging towards the center. Sure enough, Red-eyed Raven was flying towards the cloak, attempting to snatch it while he was distracted.

He caught her with his broad side while her fingers were inches from the garment, sending her gliding back to the edge of the clearing.

She stopped herself in mid-air before hitting a tree. Grinning predatorily, she held up a finger. The Beast narrowed his eyes in confusion at the red liquid on its unnaturally sharp nail.

He lowered his gaze to his right shoulder, noting the shallow cut on his bicep. He growled in dissatisfaction. **_How dare she-_**

"You asked my name, but never gave me yours," she called out.

**And you never answered, **he conceded sharply.

"Then let's both be civil about this," she offered, sly tone belaying any appearance of docility. "I'm Raven." She held her other hand out palm-forward, inviting him to reply.

**I am Garfield. **He conceded. **And you are not the Raven I know. **

"Well, you're not exactly the Garfield I know, either," she countered, tossing him a coy look. "Not that I mind, of course." She drifted clockwise around the clearing, and the Beast followed, content to stay between her and the cloak.

She took note of the blood still wet on her finger, a strange smile on her lips. Bringing it to her mouth, she reached out her tongue and slid it from base to tip, collecting the drip and its trail, cleaning her finger and nail in one sensual motion. "Oh, I wouldn't mind another taste of that…"

**You are not Raven, you are what lies beneath the surface of Raven, **the Beast clarified.

"And you're not?" She countered. "That doesn't make us any less real, does it?"

The Beast just grunted in agreement.

Suddenly Raven drifted back into the trees, obscured from sight. The Beast turned his head back and forth, scanning the tree-line. **_She could come from anywhere…_**

Her voice called out from the trees, her location everywhere and nowhere at once. "We're always there, of course, just behind the surface. We're not any less real, or any less a part of our greater whole…"

The Beast just growled. He was not a creature of deep reflection, but of _action, _and while he understood what she was saying he wished she would emerge from the shadows already….

The sound of rushing air revealed her approach from his left flank.

The Beast leapt and rolled, putting himself between her and the cloak, drawing his hindquarters for the right time…

And then she was above him. In once move, he grabbed her with his front paws, lunged his head forward, and pushed off with his hind legs.

She was unable to stop herself from hitting the tree this time.

She looked like she didn't even feel the impact, a savage grin on her face, until the Beast offered a grin in return. He licked his lips. **You don't taste so bad yourself. **

Confused, she reached up and felt the side of her neck. There was a slight tingling where the Beast had rolled his tongue up from her collarbone to just below her left ear.

**Now, answer me. Why have you hunted us? What brought you here? **

Raven nodded in respect. "I did."

**Speak clearly.**

"I am," she countered. "I am Raven's baser emotions allowed expression, her subconscious controlled because it's tinted with the demonic." She paused to gather her thoughts.

"I am anger, with the potential for rage or righteous fury, but unchecked, mostly rage. I am fear, with the potential to produce cowardice or prudent retreat."

There was silence in the clearing as the Beast processed.

Then Red eyes flared, and the Beast found himself thrown back, pinned against a massive trunk by obsidian snares.

Then Raven was there, one hand on her hip, the other gripping the hair on his jaw and pulling his face down to hers. "I brought us here out of love and concern, but to speak your language I needed something more… primal."

Her voice dropped, a husky whisper as his eyes dropped to her selective, seductive attire. Her voice whispered in his ear. "I am desire embodied, with the potential for unfailing love or ravenous lust. And for you, Garfield, I can be both."

* * *

"-and for you, Garfield, I can be both."

The Beast's eyes widened, and a sharp grin formed on its wide jaw. "**_You know not what you tamper with. To most of my kind, that constitutes a call to mate…"_**

"I know _precisely_ what I'm doing," she quipped back. "And so what if it is?"

**And you speak for your host, as well? **

"Not that she'd say it out loud."

The black tethers that held his wrists shattered like glass as the Beast wrenched free. In a fraction of a second he reversed their positions, lifting his temptress and pinning her against the same tree, reaching under her bifurcated skirt and supporting her rear with his massive paws, not caring whether his claws pierced her soft flesh. He buried his face in her neck, jaws open around her throat, caressing her pulse point with his course tongue.

He knew his claws had dug in, but she didn't seem to mind.

Quite the opposite, in fact.

Raven uttered a moan so low it sounded like a growl as she raked her nails down his expansive back and wrapped her legs around him, supporting herself by tightening her knees.

**I would pin you to this tree and rut you until you begged for more, then for mercy, then for more again. I would have your howls resound through these woods as you screamed for me, and the forest would know of our coupling. **

Her panting, breathy response surprised him. "One problem there, big guy."

He removed his jaws from around her neck to stare at her quizzically.

"If your relationship with Garfield works anything like mine with Raven, you know we can't do this."

The Beast growled in frustration. **We are in MY territory. You have given me permission to-**

"Actually, the permission is there… but not for you."

His growl was sharp, angry, until he understood.

**You desire as I do… the whole, not just the part. **

"There we go," She brought her hands around to his face, dragging a sharp fingernail under his chin. "And I tease you for not being intelligent."

He huffed, unamused.

"I once told you that having this in you didn't make you an animal; that knowing when to let it out is what made you a man. I knew that, because I have it too. And we both know that this isn't the time. Not yet."

The Beast felt the truth in her words. He huffed in frustration, but not defiance.

"Now, what do you say we finish this conversation on a higher level?"

**One last question: When it is time… you so rarely let go, how do I draw you out again? **

"Oh, Garfield," Raven's voice was sultry and sweet at the same time, "just keep doing what you do. I'm not going anywhere."

She paused before pulling him close, whispering in his ear conspiratorially. "But if you're in a hurry, I did promise to pin you to the ground next time we sparred. You can start there. Forget the shirt."

The Beast growled in satisfaction and arousal, letting the rumble roll through her, then nodded.

As one, they closed their eyes and raised their faces to the moonlight, allowing primal passions and instincts return to the constraints of higher reasoning and human restraint.

They certainly had a lot to talk about.

* * *

A/N: Okay well, there it is! What'cha think? Good? Bad? Not lemon-y enough? Personally, I was trying to avoid making the Beast and Raven's demon side too independent- they're really just Gar and Rae, just without their normal inhibitions, you know? Anyway, drop me a review, and stay tuned for part two- The Forest- Humans.

-TwistedPremise


	20. In the Forest- Humans

A/N: Hello, everyone! I know why you're here, so I won't waste any more of your time... but please, Read and Review!

-TwistedPremise

P.S. As always, my Muse and I own nothing of the Teen Titans franchise, characters, etc. I just write non-canon stories.

* * *

Previously, in Raven's Howl:

"-and for you, Garfield, I can be both."

The Beast's eyes widened, and a sharp grin formed on its wide jaw. "**_You know not what you tamper with. To most of my kind, that constitutes a call to mate…"_**

"I know _precisely_ what I'm doing," she quipped back. "And so what if it is?"

**And you speak for your host, as well? **

"Not that she'd say it out loud."

The black tethers that held his wrists shattered like glass as the Beast wrenched free. In a fraction of a second he reversed their positions, lifting his temptress and pinning her against the same tree, reaching under her bifurcated skirt and supporting her rear with his massive paws, not caring whether his claws pierced her soft flesh. He buried his face in her neck, jaws open around her throat, caressing her pulse point with his course tongue.

He knew his claws had dug in, but she didn't seem to mind.

Quite the opposite, in fact.

Raven uttered a moan so low it sounded like a growl as she raked her nails down his expansive back and wrapped her legs around him, supporting herself by tightening her knees.

**I would pin you to this tree and rut you until you begged for more, then for mercy, then for more again. I would have your howls resound through these woods as you screamed for me, and the forest would know of our coupling. **

Her panting, breathy response surprised him. "One problem there, big guy."

He removed his jaws from around her neck to stare at her quizzically.

"If your relationship with Garfield works anything like mine with Raven, you know we can't do this."

The Beast growled in frustration. **We are in MY territory. You have given me permission to-**

"Actually, the permission is there… but not for you."

His growl was sharp, angry, until he understood.

**You desire as I do… the whole, not just the part. **

"There we go," She brought her hands around to his face, dragging a sharp fingernail under his chin. "And I tease you for not being intelligent."

He huffed, unamused.

"I once told you that having this in you didn't make you an animal; that knowing when to let it out is what made you a man. I knew that, because I have it too. And we both know that this isn't the time. Not yet."

The Beast felt the truth in her words. He huffed in frustration, but not defiance.

"Now, what do you say we finish this conversation on a higher level?"

**One last question: When it is time… you so rarely let go, how do I draw you out again? **

"Oh, Garfield," Raven's voice was sultry and sweet at the same time, "just keep doing what you do. I'm not going anywhere."

She paused before whispering conspiratorially. "But if you're in a hurry, I did promise to pin you to the ground next time we sparred. You can start there. Leave the shirt at home."

The Beast growled in satisfaction and arousal, grinned, then nodded.

As one, they closed their eyes and raised their faces to the moonlight, allowing primal passions and instincts to give way to higher reasoning and human restraint.

They certainly had a lot to talk about.

* * *

And that was how Changeling and Raven found themselves entangled in each other, alone in the forest.

Changeling was instantly aware of his hands. His claws were hooked into her newly-reformed leotard, her buttocks resting in his hands. _Raven's rear end… in his hands…._

Raven, for her part, was instantly aware of her legs and neck. Her neck felt course and slightly wet, an afterglow of carnal ministrations from his tongue. And her legs… she'd never before been aware of exactly how much pale skin her leotard revealed... pale skin that was wrapped around Garfield's hips, her feet hooked behind his back…

Changeling braced for impact. "Okay, Raven, before you do anything drastic.."

She cut him off with an upraised hand, eyes pinched shut. "I need my cloak. And five minutes meditation."

Changeling just nodded, not trusting himself to say anything.

When he didn't move, she opened her eyes and glared at him.

"Umm…" Changeling just looked around himself awkwardly.

Raven flushed as she realized that their entanglement was not something he could solve himself. "Right." She focused, and levitated just enough to take her weight off of him.

"Okay, this might sting a bit…" Changeling closed his eyes as he retracted his claws.

Raven gasped as the sharp intrusions released, and briefly the only sensation was of his hands flexing, unintentionally massaging her sore muscles...

Changeling hurriedly removed his hands, holding them out to his sides- pointedly as far away from any part of her as possible.

She realized it was an invitation to unwrap her legs from behind his back, and as she did she was careful to avoid any unnecessary contact.

"Okay, I'm just going to go…. Over there…" Changeling offered lamely, walking into the woods quickly to give Raven the requested five minutes.

Raven summoned her cloak from its place in the center of the clearing, checked it for damage and upon finding none, replaced it around her shoulders as she drew up her hood.

The silence of the forest carried her shaky voice. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos…"

* * *

Changeling wandered the forest, reeling. For several minutes he wandered aimlessly, unaware of where he was or how long had transpired. Finally, he cleared his head enough to think. _What the hell just happened? _

He remembered it all, of course. He'd been back at the sight of the accident, the night he'd risked everything to save Raven's life. He was releasing that ball of tension that insisted- _demanded- _he march right up to her and confess everything when suddenly she was there.

_She followed me, _Changeling realized, _she heard it… and she didn't run away._

And then the hunt, the fight over her cloak, the way she pinned him to the tree… the way he pinned her back….

_Gah, I'm such an idiot! _Garfield fell to his knees, hands gripping his head. _Why couldn't I control it, stop it? _He remembered the way his claws had dug into her as he gripped her behind roughly, needingly.

_Oh God, _he realized, staring at his hands. _I… I hurt her. I forced her to do the one thing the works so hard to avoid, then I hunted her, stole her cloak, fought her… hurt her. Damn near did more. _

"AAAAAAAGH!" He screamed as he stood and turned in one motion, throwing a right cross directly into the trunk of a tree at least three times his width.

For a moment, nothing happened. He stood there, panting, and with a series of ancient groans cracks circled the trunk of the massive oak and the tree fell sideways, crashing into the forest floor with a resounding echo that left Changeling's ears ringing.

He stood there, face down, as sweat dripped to the forest floor from his matted hair until the forest was silent again.

Except it wasn't silent.

He looked up, directly where the oak of a once ancient tree stood, and winced.

* * *

There, hovering in a lotus position, sat Raven. Her eyes were still closed, her mantra still repeating its rhythmic cadence.

"Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos."

Changeling turned, suddenly sheepish, hoping he hadn't disturbed her meditation too severely…

"You didn't do anything wrong, Garfield."

He ignored her reassurances. "Raven, I'm- I'm so sorry. I lost control, I don't know what-"

"Stop." She opened her eyes. "Stop apologizing, and listen."

He turned to face her. She hadn't moved, she was still in her meditation position, but her eyes were open. Normal, deep, violet eyes.

"You come out here to vent, to bring parts of you into balance that are hard to manage. I, more than anyone, understand the need to do that. But I intruded into your personal space, taking whatever risks were associated. I'm sorry for interrupting your 'meditations,' and violating your privacy."

They both recognized the irony. "Eh," he shrugged, "I guess that makes us even?"

"Hardly," her dry monotone quipped. "The count is still several thousand to one."

Changeling just shook his head, chuckling. _Only Raven…. _

He hopped up onto the stump of the newly-fallen tree, sat facing her, and sobered.

"Seriously, Raven, I'm sorry. What I did-"

"We did."

"What?" Changeling was confused. She wouldn't even let him get a sentence out before-

"Garfield, do you really think what happened here tonight was all on you?" Raven gestured around herself.

Garfield looked around, noticing for the first time the destruction around them, and suddenly didn't feel so bad for toppling the oak.

The small clearing they'd met in last night had grown. Where once you might have played a game of pick-up football was now an Olympic stadium-size gap in the forest.

Some trees had simply been hit with enough force that their massive roots had ripped from the ground as they toppled, uprooting others as they fell. Others had cracked in half, or looked like they'd been cut clean at the base by an unnaturally sharp blade.

Enough splinters littered the ground that it appeared some had simply exploded from the inside. _Which is actually a distinct possibility, _Changeling noted. _How did I not notice this happening at the time? _

His eyes came back to his hands, and he realized that he had probably been… otherwise engaged… at the time.

Raven interrupted his thoughts. "Stop it. I can feel your guilt, Garfield, it's not your fault."

"I… I lost control, Rae. I lost control, and I almost-"

"Felt pretty in-control to me." Raven's voice was quiet, and Changeling could see the slight blush under her hood in the moonlight, even over this distance. "I think we both knew exactly what we were doing, even if we'd never consider something so… impulsive… normally." Her hand drifted to her rear, and Changeling could see her wince slightly.

"Oh, God Rae, I'm so sorry, are you-"

"I'm fine, really." Her hand glowed blue for a moment. "There, no harm done."

Changeling's shoulders relaxed, relieved, when his back twinged, and he could feel the night air on a series of long, shallow furrows where his uniform and skin had been split- residual scratches incurred in his other form carried over by his subconscious. He looked at his bicep. _I guess I didn't escape unscathed, either._

"Come here," Raven gestured in front of her.

Changeling just looked at her, wary.

She rolled her eyes. "Let me heal you before those scratches get something in them."

Changeling nodded, too drained to argue that he was okay.

He walked over in silence, adopted a cross-legged seating position in front of Raven, and leaned forward.

He heard her hiss behind him. "These are deep, Gar, why didn't you say anything?"

He shrugged, then winced. "Didn't notice."

"This will take me a few minutes to heal in this state," Raven began. "So help me understand… how long have you been like this?"

Changeling's ears drooped. "By 'this' you mean the Beast?"

"If that's what you call it, yes." Raven called on her energy and her hands began to glow.

Changeling's back arched as the unnatural chill of her aura hit his sensitive nerves. "I don't know, really. I mean, like I said, it's been there ever since I can remember. It was a lot more chaotic before the Adonis thing, actually. Whatever that stuff did, it brought a lot of instincts together, gave them kind of one voice." He paused. "At first I was grateful, but when the instincts merged… the combination was strong."

He paused, as his voice grew distant, like he was remembering something from long ago. "I liked you then, you know. It was small, simple, but after the Malchior thing I got a little jealous, and I guess that's what made the Beast so crazy about protecting you."

He shook his head. "It was weird, you know? I wasn't completely over Terra yet, but it didn't matter. She never brought out the kind of reaction you started to, over time it became harder and harder to ignore."

His voice returned to the present. "Remember when we met up with the Doom Patrol? How Mento and I disappeared to 'talk about old times?'" He chuckled. "I told him I was dealing with violent impulses during battle- I used to struggle with those as a kid- and was worried you'd pick up on them. He helped me put some mental blocks in place, help me hide my impulses from empaths."

He chuckled. "Worked for a long time… but about two years ago the impulses changed, got stronger. I'd given Terra up, you and I had gotten so closer, and you were opening up, _growing _up… "

Raven flashed back to the first time she caught a strange emotional spike from Garfield. Shortly after her 20th birthday they'd been thwarting a Red-X robbery and she'd been hit with a kind of adhesive tar, sending her flying back- right into Beast Boy. They'd been stuck together, unable to rejoin the fight as the rest of the team pursued the elusive thief. After his human form had resulted in more than a few _awkward_ positions, Raven had found herself plastered to the side of a large green elephant until Cyborg arrived with the solvent.

She'd been too distracted with her frustration at the time to realize exactly how compromising some of those positions had been, or to dwell on the various shades of embarrassment her teammate had been giving off.

Changeling continued, "So after a few trips to the bay, I started coming out here to let my instincts run loose, try and burn them off."

He sighed deeply. "It was working, too… until hunters started finding my tracks."

Realization dawned in Raven's eyes. "Those prints, the reason we were out here that night… that was you?"

Changeling's voice was almost too quiet to hear. "Yeah. I'd been trying to clean up after myself, you know? Bury the occasional dead deer, wipe out prints, make claw marks look like axe cuts… but it wasn't enough."

Raven could feel the sorrow radiate from his chest. "When I got your call, I knew it was my fault. That trap was set for me, and you… you almost died…"

Changeling was getting choked up, so Raven stepped in. "But I didn't. You saved me… you used the Beast to-"

Changeling's head whipped around faster than she thought possible, his eyes wide. "Starfire told you?!"

Raven blinked in surprise. "No- I- I figured it out when I saw- heard- you again tonight."

Changeling released a deep breath and faced forward, offering his back to her again, re-aggravated from his sudden turn.

"Starfire knew?"

Changeling just nodded. "Yeah, she- she tried to meet me half-way, to fly you back to the tower. I didn't let her. Swore her to secrecy, then passed out."

Raven just shook her head. _That explains so much… _She made yet another note never to underestimate her alien friend.

Changeling continued. "Anyway, after that night I knew I needed to get out of the tower for a while- to work with Mento again. I asked Robin for a vacation, but he wouldn't let me go without an explanation. So I called Rita, she had Steve call me in 'for a mission.'"

He paused, clearly deciding how much to skip forward. "Anyway, it took a lot of mental mumbo-jumbo I couldn't explain if I tried, but when I came back I had the new bod, new duds, and a whole lot better understanding of what was going on in my head. Turns out, some of it was puberty- always a weird thing for shapeshifters. Oh, and Mento helped me set up new mental filters, too, to keep you from picking up on anything embarrassing on accident."

Raven couldn't help but be surprised. "You can control what emotions you project?"

Changeling shook his head. "No, more like just keep things from leaking out if I _really _don't want them to."

_No wonder my empathy couldn't tell me if he was interested… he was blocking me out. _"That's impressive, it takes serious mental and emotional control to achieve that. Even I can't control what I project in my aura."

"Yeah, well, that's what Mento's good at," Changeling shrugged. "He's got the 'mental' thing down, I just let him poke around in my head and tell me what to do. Shapeshifting's weird, too, it's a lot of mental training and control, though it helps that I've got instincts."

They were getting off-topic. "So with the new control, why did you start coming out here again?"

She could feel Changeling tense in front of her, as his voice got sheepish. "Well, I mean, nothing had changed, really. I still liked you, maybe more than ever, but I thought you were out of my league- thought you'd go for more intellectual guys, you know, maybe somebody who understands half the stuff you read, maybe could do magic too."

She realized who he was describing and stilled.

"Anyway, I was fine, had everything under control-"

"And then Overload."

"And then the thing with-" he paused. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"The howl," she reasoned. "It's happened three times now. Every other time was related to the Beast, made sense that this one would be, too."

"Yeah, you got that right," Changeling admitted. "When he- I- got the idea that you might be interested back, he woke up with a vengeance. I took the gig with the movie as an excuse to get out of the tower and come out here, try and burn it out again. Except-"

"This time, it wouldn't go away." She finished for him.

"Yeah." He sounded defeated, ashamed. _Like he did on the rocks last time. _

Raven finished healing the gouges on his back, inspecting the flat, smooth skin beneath his ripped tunic. She could feel the heat radiating from his skin as she held her palm a hair's breadth from his skin, mirroring the overwhelming sense of defeat emanating from his psyche. _He's never told anyone, _she realized. _He's been fighting for years, just trying to reign in a powerful, primal desire. To keep himself from doing something impulsive, denying a part of himself, afraid it would hurt someone…_

But not just anyone. _He's been fighting to protect me, _she realized, _from himself._

He'd done so well that the only way she ever found the truth was to chase him miles deep into the forest and reveal her own hidden desires, and he still felt like he had failed.

Raven knew what she had to do.

She settled in front of him, legs folded under her, as she brought her hands to either side of his face. "Look at me," she ordered.

He glanced up briefly.

"Look at me, Garfield." That got his attention. "I know. You've fought, you've fought so hard, but now all that fighting has failed you and you're scared."

She stared into his bright green eyes and forced him to look into hers. "But it's okay, Gar, you don't have to fight, anymore."

She could see the fear in his eyes: fear of rejection. _After all that, he still believes himself unwanted, undesired. _

"Let me show you," she offered, and inclined her head, her chakra stone projecting.

* * *

Changeling didn't know what to do. This was rare, virtually unexplored territory. Raven's hands on his face, her soft voice and softer words… and an invitation to do… what, exactly? He didn't know… but he trusted her, and that was enough.

He closed his eyes and let her hands guide him, as he inclined his forehead to brush with hers….

As she poured out everything she'd heard in his howl back into him sevenfold.

He felt her gratitude from outside her door on the night of Malchior's betrayal, her understanding and satisfaction of seeing him smile after Adonis, the hope he gave her- the boldness and absolute certainty that things would turn out alright- from the penny. She poured out her joy at his return, her quiet pleasure at every time he tried to make her laugh- even when he failed. He felt her admiration for how he honored his principles and convictions by denying his carnivore instincts, and the way he looked for the best in everyone- even her.

She poured out her rage when Terra betrayed him specifically, her jealousy from when she'd originally believed him to be dating Rose. She poured out her fear when he'd been captured by Soto, her confidence in his provision each and every time she called for help.

She poured out the effect his shirtless spar with Nightwing had stirred, the way she had stolen glances in most every training session they'd had for the past year, and how this was only an extension of the affection she'd felt for several years before- affection developing too slow for her to fully recognize until it was too late and he was gone.

She poured out her loneliness at his absence, the way he brightened her day.

Finally, she poured out reassurance that whatever he thought about the events of this evening, he was most certainly not alone, nor at fault. She had meant every word she'd spoken, even if it had taken opening up to her raw emotional nature to reveal it. And given the chance, she'd do it again.

* * *

Changeling couldn't tell how much time had passed. It could have been seconds, it could have been centuries. All he knew was that as he sat there, swimming in the currents of energy and passion he had never realized resided beneath Raven's stoic façade, he was not alone.

His primal side called her the Mate of his desire because despite the many mating practices of the animal kingdom, he knew he only truly _desired_ Raven, in every sense of the word.

And now he understood that he was not alone in that desire. In any respect.

It was overwhelming, it was exhilarating, it was everything he'd never believed possible manifested in one realization.

And then the currents exhausted themselves, having delivered their message, and he found himself staring into deep violet eyes that shone in the moonlight. Eyes that saw him- every part of him- and within which he could see the whole of Raven anticipating his reply.

He knew just what to say, too.

"So, uh, Rae, I was wondering… would you like to, like, go to a movie or something sometime? Maybe dinner? "

_Damnit, that was supposed to be smooth…_

* * *

For a second, Raven could only stare, stunned at what she'd just heard, and Changeling was certain he'd blown it.

Then she let out a choked snort.

Then another.

He realized she was trying to hold back laughter, and the damn burst.

* * *

The two Titans couldn't help it. Maybe it was the absurdity of everything that had happened that night, or exhaustion from what they'd just gone through. Maybe they were drunk on moonlight. But whatever it was, they laughed.

Changeling loved the sound of Raven's laugh; that he'd had to make a surprisingly thorough fool of himself to hear it was immaterial. He loved how it rang clear and unrestrained through the forest, and that he was able to share this moment with her.

They laughed until their stomachs hurt, until tears formed in their eyes, and when they finally got themselves under control they looked at each other and laughed again.

* * *

Changeling finally stood, still chuckling, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head at himself. "I'm sorry, Rae, that was terrible, can I-"

And then his brain wasn't working again, as he looked down to find Raven wrapped around him in a warm, tight hug.

He just grinned, and returned it.

"What's this one for?" He asked, not letting go.

"For being _you." _Raven replied, unable to explain any further.

She didn't need to.

* * *

Meanwhile, on Titan's Island:

NIghtwing sat at his office workstation as the computer processed. His normally composed demeanor was flaking as he drummed his fingers on the desktop. He'd started his research into Rose Wilson an hour ago by trying to find her school records.

When he couldn't locate them, he got suspicious.

Now, after unsuccessfully combing every civilian database he could think of (and a few governmental ones he wasn't supposed to have access to) he was worried.

_Relax, _he thought to himself. _I'm sure there's a good reason for all this. Changeling and she could have agreed to keep her real name a secret, for the paparazzi's sake. Maybe she didn't want him to know she's related to somebody famous, or infamous…_

He glanced again at the taskbar. 98%.

_I'm sure if I had more information I could pull up her records. A name isn't much to go on, after all. I'm sure she just made new social media accounts last year because she's a new professional and wanted to erase embarrassing posts from her past. _

But if so, why couldn't he find her old accounts?

The computer beeped as the task completed.

It was rare that the Titans accessed League files. The League was sensitive about security, and only Nightwing knew the series of 18-digit-long rolling passcodes. He hadn't used them in months.

_But if there's something dangerous about her, they'll know it. _He reached for the printout, noting the document was unusually short- only a single page.

It only took glancing one picture for his heart to skip a beat.

_No…_

He pulled out his communicator to signal an all-Titans alarm-

-but nothing happened.

He tried again, but despite pressing the alarm command the tower remained silent.

_Divide targets, install an undercover agent, to gather intel, _he checked off a list in his head.

_Last step: cut communications. But that only happens immediately before-_

In a second, he was sprinting through the corridors, yelling out for his team.

"Titans, we're under attack!"

Starfire was instantly by his side, flying alongside him. "Boyfriend Richard, what is the matter? We are-"

"Not now Star, grab Cyborg and Raven and meet me-"

"-Friend Raven is gone, in pursuit of friend Changeli-"

"Then grab Vic and meet me in the common room." His tone left no room for negotiation.

* * *

They arrived to find him staring out the main window, his communicator literally crushed in his grip.

"Yo, man, what's the meaning of_"

Nightwing cut him off with a raised hand. "Slade." He tossed the Justice League report over his shoulder.

Cyborg caught it, he and Starfire approaching the window. "No…"

Starfire gasped. "We must warn friends Changeling and Raven! They could be in great-"

"It's too late, Star." His voice was steel, honed and folded to a perfect edge.

But not one pointed at her.

The others joined him at the window and gasped.

Surfacing just off the rocks of their island were no fewer than a dozen submarines, each already in the process of discharging troops and weaponry for an advanced assault.

It was dark, but it was clear enough that the soldiers were all the same: black and orange suits with only one visible 'd be hard to see, harder to hit, and it looked like their technology had received a substantial upgrade over the several years since the Titans had seen them last.

There was only one thing to do.

"Titans, Go."

* * *

Back in the clearing:

Raven and Changeling rested in the warmth of their embrace against the chill of the night. It felt right, the way they fit together, the way her arms wrapped around him, the way his rested naturally over her shoulders. They just enjoyed the moment of peace, the feel of each other's breathing, their scents, the release of years of secrets and tension...

When they finally pulled apart Changeling scratched the back of his head.

"So, is that a 'yes'?"

Raven's deadpan stare spoke volumes. "No, I make a habit of hugging people for no reason."

"Oh, I thought it was just the sexy ones."

Her glare narrowed, but her light blush did not escape his notice.

"Woah, yeah, right, about that... Uh, how much of that stuff about permission-"

"About as much as your promise of rutting."

It was his turn to blush. Deeply.

"Okay, umm... how's that going to work with..." He just gestured to the forest around them.

She paused, then sighed. "Very, very carefully. I have some wards that might work... I'll have to do some research."

"Oh, okay then..."

The awkward silence was deafening.

"Listen, Rae... I'm sorry this is so backwards, I never meant for it to happen like this-"

She surprised him with a deadpan confession. "I prefer it this way."

Changeling cocked his head to the side. "Really? I mean, aren't I normally supposed to start off all sweet and innocent, make some grand gesture, take you out on a couple dates before-"

She cut him off. "I'll take up-front and honest, thank you. I don't **do** 'sweet and innocent' better to skip that phase entirely. As far as gestures go," she gestured around them at the destroyed acre of forest, and especially at the tree he'd literally punched in half. "this seems grand enough to me."

She grinned at the sheepish look on his face as she continued. "And as far as the 'normal' system: I don't think either of us qualifies as 'normal,' why should this be any different?"

Changeling just shook his head. "Works for me. When'd you get so smart about this stuff?"

She considered taking credit, but decided against it. "I was talking to Starfire this morning. She said what works for some people doesn't work for others, everyone has to find what works for them."

Changeling nodded, laughing. "Gotta love Starfire, for all Nightwing's issues, she manages to make do. You don't mind it being so… sudden?"

She just raised an eyebrow. "Sudden? it sounds like this been a long time coming..." She paused as she watched him grimace at her knowledge of his long-held secret. "...for both of us." He visibly perked up. "And even if neither of us was aware of it before tonight; if I've learned anything about you, Garfield, it's that nothing's ever predictable. Or half-way."

That gave him an idea, and he inched closer. "Is unpredictable… good?"

He was close enough now that she had to look up sharply to maintain eye contact. "Normally, I can't stand it." She lowered her voice, letting her stoic tone soften. "But with you, I think I can live with it."

"Good," Changeling leaned forward. "Because I'm not going anywhere anytime soon."

Raven closed her eyes in anticipation, as Changeling drew closer-

-And both their communicators rang.

Startled, both Titans jumped back several feet, the moment ruined.

"OH COME ON!" Changeling screamed in frustration, venting by repeatedly smashing his head into a large pine.

* * *

Raven grinned at his antics before reinitializing her standard, stoic appearance and drawing her communicator.

She flipped it open. "What is it Nightwing, we're-"

"Hello, Raven" a cold, clinical monotone echoed from her comlink. "I'm looking for Changeling, can you put him on?"

Changeling had frozen in place at the first hint of Slade's voice. He drew his own communicator with a snarl. "What do you want, Slade?"

"My dear boy, you're asking the wrong question already," the false-conversational tone chastised. Raven watched as Slade walked, the camera following him. "The better question is: what do **you** want. I offered you six figures to come visit a private island and bunk with an attractive young woman, and you turned it down…"

Slade's eye narrowed, and his voice grew cold. "So I'm making another offer. Do you want to save downtown from a small thermonuclear explosion?" He stopped next to a complex-looking machine packed in a shipping crate. A clear, red timer counted down from ten minutes. "If so, I suggest you get here quickly, your friends at the tower are otherwise occupied."

Raven couldn't still a gasp as the video cut to Titan's Tower, where a small army of Slade-bots engaged three heroes, with more soldiers spilling out from submarines half-invisibly in the darkness and the waves. The three Titans were certainly capable of handling such an assault, but depending on Slade's supply of soldiers and technology it could take anywhere from minutes to hours.

"Oh, and Mark?" Slade added. "Bring Raven along, too. She can meet your ex-girlfriend."

Slade stepped aside, revealing Rose standing behind him, wearing a black bodysuit and two katana strapped to her back. They watched as she pulled on a half-mask to cover her head down past her eyes, ending at the base of her nose and leaving her mouth exposed.

Of course, half the mask was black, the other half orange.

"Ravager looks forward to meeting her, too."

The video feed cut out, replaced by a map of Jump City with a pulsing red dot.

* * *

"It's a trap," Raven felt obligated to point out.

"Of course it is," Changeling countered. "I knew it would be when I broke up with her this afternoon. I forced his hand when he couldn't get me to the island."

"So if you expected a trap, what's your plan?"

Changeling just grinned. "Well, I was going to fly, but with you here and a ten-minute timer, would you mind doing the honors?"

Raven just sighed in resignation. "And once we get there?"

"Oh yeah, that." Changeling's grin turned predatory enough to send shivers down Raven's spine. "That's when we spring the trap."

* * *

A/N: Well, there it is! Not so dramatic, but Gar and Rae are officially a couple! *Cheers, huzzah...* Okay, yeah, a little anticlimactic, especially after last chapter, but there are literally a hundred ways to write this chapter, I had to cover all the bases!

Oh, and for those of you who read that part where Gar and Rae talk about sex so casually and think "we're getting a lemon," don't. I may write up to the very edge and strongly imply a lemon, but I'm not writing it. You'll have to use your imaginations.

So anyway, let me know what you think... Who's excited for the epic showdown? Here's a teaser- the of Chapter 21 is... The Demon's Bargain.

Why is Slade so fixated on Raven? What's his plan for making "the things she loves destroy her?" And why should he even care?

And in case you don't care about Slade, the bigger question is this: How far will Raven go to save the one she loves?

Until next chapter,

-TwistedPremise


	21. The Demon's Bargain

A/N: Here it is: the grand confrontation. Slade's master plan... what it's all been building towards...

Also, a big thank you to my new Beta IAMwhatIamK! It was great getting specific feedback on a few things I was uncertain of, I hope I managed to satifactorily make the necessary changes before posting this.

My name is TwistedPremise and I own nothing related to the Teen Titans or their affiliated franchise.

* * *

Raven and Changeling emerged, rising from a shadow on the floor slab of an abandoned factory. Originally part of a research facility for Jump University, the warehouse had been abandoned in favor of more modern facilities years ago. The old building was quickly declared "historic" by the preservation society, and the result was an abandoned, loosely secured facility only half a mile from downtown's busiest nightlife, a Friday night phenomenon currently in full swing.

It was the perfect place to store and detonate a bomb, if one were targeting the dense downtown population.

Changeling's eyes adjusted quickly to the dark, picking out the canvas-covered crates in the corner. "There; cover me."

Raven scanned the shadows as Changeling flung away the tarp, revealing the sawdust-packed crates from their comlink video. One crate already had the lid removed.

The red countdown ticked down from six minutes.

"You think you can get this out over the bay?" Changeling whispered.

Raven just nodded. Getting them both here so quickly was a major tax on her energies, especially after the invisibility spell and emotional exertion from earlier, but there weren't many options.

She'd just begun to call on her power when Slade's voice echoed out.

"I wouldn't recommend that."

Changeling whirled, and Raven followed his gaze to a catwalk, where the prodigal villain stepped into a shaft of moonlight from a hole in the roof.

"There's a gyroscope in the timer," Slade continued. "Try and move it, and everything in a five-mile radius becomes dust."

The Titans glanced at each other nervously. Cyborg had attempted to teach the team about disarming bombs, but aside from Nightwing, his efforts had only taught them that it was a task better suited to experts than amateurs. Too much could go wrong, far too easily.

"To disarm it," Slade continued, voice betraying no concern. "You need two keys. I have one-" He held up what looked like a typical credit card- "Ravager holds the other." At this, the now masked Rose made an appearance at the far end of the warehouse before slipping out the door.

"I suggest you hurry, time is running out."

Raven made to follow after Rose when Changeling caught her arm.

"I've got Rose, you take Slade." His voice left no room for debate.

To Raven, there was always room to debate. "That's what Slade-"

"I know. Trust me, I've got this. Get the card, drop it here, and keep him busy. I'll take care of the rest."

Raven could only nod. Ever since the Brotherhood, Garfield had been the team's go-to field leader when Nightwing wasn't around, and it was clear why. He either knew what he was doing, or he did a damn fine job of faking it.

He disappeared after Rose as a bloodhound- suited for speed and tracking- leaving Raven standing alone.

She turned her eyes to the figure of the man who'd haunted her 16th birthday, who'd nearly destroyed her leader's mind, and who'd converted Terra- their friend and first addition to the team- into perhaps their closest scrape with death ever.

Pursuing him had pit Robin against his own team twice- and in two separate uniforms. Slade had literally died and come back to life, and he stood there as though he were watching waves crash on the shore, so impassive Raven literally couldn't feel his presence through the dull roar of downtown Jump two blocks over.

And he was _waiting_ for her.

That's when Raven realized.

Her eyes narrowed, flashing red, and she rose up to his height.

"This was your plan all along, wasn't it?"

"I can't imagine what you mean," Slade quipped as he tucked the card into a compartment on his belt.

Raven took note of which pocket as she sent two stripes of black energy. "This trap for Changeling-" Two more pulses- "everything you've done to draw him out and separate him from the team-" Slade dodged the attacks easily, barely moving, so she used her next pulse to slice several of the supports for the catwalk he stood on.

He leapt backwards, arcing gracefully to land on another catwalk.

"My presence here isn't an accident."

Another pulse sent his platform crashing to the ground, but he was already on a third before the clanging echo quieted.

She was getting angry, but she didn't stop herself as it fueled her attacks. They grew faster and stronger as she continued, forcing him further and further back into the warehouse as he leapt to safe ground.

"You used Rose to draw him away, even now-"

Energy pulsed, and decking crashed to the concrete.

"You could have attacked him during patrol,"

-another pulse

"Or during any of the times he met with Rose,"

Her eyes had settled red.

"But you waited to attack the tower until we were both gone-"

Slade was running out of catwalk to take refuge on…

"But what I still can't figure out is _why!"_

Raven released a massive horizontal blade, bringing the whole walkway crashing down at once.

Raven hovered there, suspended in midair as she panted heavily from exertion.

The dust settled, revealing Slade standing atop wreckage, looking entirely unaffected, just staring up at her with his one, smug eye.

The floor was littered with debris, so Raven seized it.

Slade was forced into an acrobatic, deadly dance as obsidian-clad pipes flew at him in rapid succession from every direction.

Raven was shouting now. "Why me? What is your fascination; that you'd go to such lengths? Why did you even return? Why bring Ravager?"

The maelstrom was too thick to see through now, but she wasn't done. She lifted a large slab of catwalk, preparing to bring it crashing down.

Her tone was tinged with otherworldly power. "If you wanted me**, why go after Garfield at all**?!"

Raven stopped when a pipe flew from her maelstrom, whipping past her close enough to make her flinch. Her red eyes dissipated as she realized how close she'd come to losing control.

The pipes and decking dropped, and Slade stood in the center of the wreckage with his bo-staff drawn, not even breathing heavily.

Raven, on the other hand, became distinctly aware of how exhausted she was as the tax on her energies hit all at once. She drifted lower slowly as Slade's chilling monotone began.

"Garfield" he remarked. "On first-name basis now I see." he began walking towards her. "And speaking of names, you really should have done your homework. I go by Deathstroke now."

Raven's feet touched the floor as Slade-Deathstroke- made a measured, relaxed pace towards her.

"I've left the petty villainy game behind me, I've found a much more… rewarding… industry." He paused, as if looking for the best way to explain quantum physics to a small child. "I take contracts, take care of problems nobody else can solve. Problems like people, or governments, or even heroes."

Raven summoned a reserve from deep within herself as obsidian claws leapt from shadows to grab at the masked man and the card in his belt. "So that's what this is? You've got a contract to kill us, you're just someone else's errand-boy?"

He sliced through the specters with his staff, forcing them to dissipate as he maintained his approach. "No, my dear. There's no contract on your head, or any of your little team that I'm aware of." He paused. "And as you alluded to earlier, if I merely intended to kill any one of you I wouldn't have bothered with the pageantry, you'd already be dead."

Raven was forced to back up, half-stumbling over debris as she fought to maintain separation and her attacks.

"-But I have another problem, one of a more personal nature, and it's begun to affect my business." The one visible eye narrowed on her, a focused glare of surprising intensity. "My clients are powerful people, and with that power comes knowledge. Knowledge of my past, and specifically of where it intersects with yours." His tone was infuriatingly conversational as he stalked forward.

"You see, I took a contract once where my client refused to pay me. Normally that isn't an issue; they come to regret that decision quickly enough, I get what's owed me, and enhance my reputation in the process."

"This time, however, I required assistance in recovering my payment, and in getting retribution on the one who cheated me. "

Raven blanched as she realized what he was referring to. _Trigon. _In her shock she stumbled, falling to her back on the concrete floor.

Deathstroke just continued his approach, still batting away projectiles and obsidian hands. "He cheated me, and before I was able to exact retribution, you defeated him. It doesn't matter what role I played, my reputation was marred… and in this profession, reputation is _everything." _

Raven threw up a domed shield as Slade reached striking distance.

"I aim to restore my reputation, my dear girl, by destroying you- defeater and daughter of the only person to cheat me and not feel my wrath in full."

Raven burst her shield outward, forcing the now-mercenary back as her eyes glowed black. Darkness surrounded his form as she pinned his arms with obsidian bands, lifting him a foot off the ground, and she rose up to stare him in the face.

"You wanted me? Well congratulations, I'm here." She reached forward, pulled the card from his belt, and sent it through a small portal to the bomb behind her.

She didn't even look back to watch it land. "But you haven't answered the question. Why the set-up, why Rose and Garfield? You want me dead, why are you the one trapped?

In truth, Raven was on her last legs. Trapping a person like this was difficult- it required incredibly steady concentration, concentration she was struggling to maintain.

Slade didn't seem the least bit disturbed. "I don't want you dead, Raven. I want you destroyed. I'm going to take the one thing you love, that you never thought you'd have, and take it from you."

A sinking feeling settled in her gut when she realized what he was referring to. The warehouse suddenly seemed unnaturally quiet.

Slade's voice was too calm, too _confident. _

She realized that he wasn't looking at her.

She followed his gaze, turning as her eyes widened in horror.

About thirty yards in front of her, kneeling on the concrete next to the bomb, was Changeling.

And standing behind him, holding a razor-sharp blade to his throat, was Rose.

* * *

Deathstroke's voice echoed from behind her. "Ravager, dear, disarm the bomb. We won't be needing it any longer."

Raven watched as Rose pulled out both keys with one hand- having clearly intercepted the one she'd retrieved from Deathstroke- and inserted them to a slot just below the timer.

The countdown froze at 0:48.

Raven tried to focus on the blade around Garfield's throat, to freeze it in place long enough for him to escape, but the blade simply glowed a dull red before fading. _Pure iron, _she realized, _likely with a few ancient runes. He planned for this. _

She whirled back to face the mercenary. "Kill him and it's the last thing you'll do." She tightened her mental grip to emphasize her point.

One eye rolled. "Hollow threats? I thought those were reserved for team leaders." He paused. "You're welcome to try." He tilted his head up, offering her his throat.

The sinking feeling settled into a cold pit as she scanned the figure in front of her with all her senses. _Of course. _

Deathstroke's head hid the concrete, detached from its body.

It sparked twice, and the eye dimmed.

The decapitated "body" of an advanced Slade-bot hit the floor, and for a moment Raven hoped that it might be over.

"You should know by now," Deathstroke's voice reverberated in the cavity of the warehouse. "I always have a contingency."

A new Deathstroke stepped forward from the shadows, halfway between Raven and Changeling.

"Now, Raven, I have enjoyed our little reunion, but it's time to conclude our business."

Raven turned back to Rose, panic setting in as she knew she was too far away…

"Ravager, kill him."

* * *

For a moment, nothing happened. Raven stared into Changeling's eyes, willing him to do something. Transform, fight, access the Beast, _anything… _but then she looked again.

There was no concern in Changeling's eyes.

He kneeled there, Rose's hand gripping his hair and forcing his chin up to expose his throat, a blade to his neck….

And the idiot was _laughing._

* * *

Changeling's low chuckle reverberated through the cavernous space. Raven and Deathstroke stood, waiting, as Rose appeared frozen in place.

Then Changeling called out. "You've got one problem there, _Slade." _The last word was teasing, almost mocking as the shapeshifter belied his posture with a strong, confident tone. "Nobody likes you."

"Rose, I said-"

"Oh, she heard you." Changeling cut Slade off. "But you see, she doesn't want to follow you anymore. In fact, she's been working against you from the beginning. She warned me, told me you were back the first time we met."

His voice focused in on a harder, less boisterous tone. "I've known all along, Slade. Not the part about Raven, I admit, but enough to know I needed backup."

Slade's voice was narrow. "What have you done-"

"Already asking the wrong question," Changeling chastised, grinning at the irony. "The better question is this: why did I suddenly decide not to play along anymore?"

Changeling continued. "You wanted her to tell me about the drug, didn't you?"

Raven hadn't considered that angle, but Deathstroke's responding silence was answer enough.

"That was your insurance, to make sure I followed your little script… A damsel in distress, forced to play the bad guy, just in case the movie thing wasn't enough to keep me strung along. And it worked. I played along for weeks, meeting for coffee, flirting over dessert, agreed to fly out to a remote island away from my team… And then I just drop it because she flirts too hard, insults Raven a little? Come on, Slade, surely that was a little suspicious…"

Raven realized she hadn't questioned it. The timing had worked out well enough, the act delivered well, she hadn't stopped to wonder why Garfield would apparently give up on trying to save Rose.

"The fact it, I was buying time." Garfield was literally inches from having his throat cut, and he was _gloating? _"I needed time to call in reinforcements. Because unlike you Slade, the Titans have friends."

Raven remembered how only yesterday she'd followed Changeling to the bakery, sensed the presence of someone or something foreign leave the stranger. _He wasn't in danger, he was picking up an ally…_

Changeling's voice brought her back to the moment.

"So I brought in someone who could tell me if Rose was legit or not. Someone who could help me break the control you had on her, someone who'd recently learned how to stay hidden until just the right time to strike…"

Changeling glanced up, and Raven's eyes were drawn to Rose's face. Half her mask had been ripped in her fight with Garfield, exposing one eye-

-An eye that flashed with light and settled a glowing bright green.

"I'd introduce you, but from what he tells me, you're already familiar."

Raven heard Deathstroke whisper-

"Joseph?"

Rose still didn't move, but her bright green eye was intently focused on the masked mercenary.

When she spoke, her voice was the same, but her tone was sad, cold, and her pronunciation was different.

"Actually, dad, I go by Jericho now."

* * *

_Jericho…._

It all made sense now. The stranger in the alley, Changeling's immediate break-up with Rose afterward, his insistence on going after Rose himself, his confidence in "springing the trap"….

Changeling cut into Raven's dawn of realization.

"How you doing in there, Jer?"

Rose responded with her same, unfamiliar intonation. "It's some pretty strong conditioning. We can't overrule the drug, but with Rose's help we can resist obeying it," Jericho paused. "But I've learned quite a bit: Rose was telling you the truth about everything, that bomb is a last-minute idea too weak to even bring down the building, and Slade fully expected Rose to kill you."

Changeling grinned and disappeared.

A second later, he was standing beside Rose, one hand on her shoulder, staring at Slade.

"And Changeling?... I've seen this drug before." Jericho's voice was distant. "It's called mirakuru, he used a strain of it on me… looking for a way to create the perfect super-soldier."

Jericho paused, and Raven didn't need empathic senses to feel the pain in his memory. "It's gave me my abilities... and took away my vocal cords."

There was silence for a minute, before Changeling gently ventured a question: "Is there an antidote?"

Rose's eye narrowed. "Arsenal mentioned he and Green Arrow dealt with a bunch of the stuff back when he was still called Speedy. Rose took a dose this morning, we should have plenty of time to get a cure from them before withdrawal sets in."

Three sets of eyes settled on Slade then, as Raven realized the balance of power had now shifted entirely in their favor.

Changeling called out to her. "Together?"

Raven grinned, a predatory satisfaction settling in her core. "Together."

As one, they dove towards their familiar enemy. In the last 24 hours they'd hidden from each other, fought, confessed, healed, and faced nearly devastating defeat together.

Now it was time to hunt together.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Metropolis:

The bald man landed heavily on the boardroom table.

"Give it up, Lex," a floating picture of clean-cut righteousness commanded. "It's over. You don't have the votes, and the United Nations meets in two hours."

"You have no right to treat me this way," Lex Luthor straightened his suit in indignation. "I'm a respected businessman, I've done nothing wrong. I was invited to the conference, you have no reason to come into my office and-"

"We have all the evidence we need," a darker, rougher voice cut in as a man in black body-armor held up a flash drive. "Records of you writing checks and providing discounted military goods- some clearly against international treaties- to leaders of member-nations all over the world."

Luthor sneered. "That will never hold up in court."

"Perhaps not," Superman admitted. "But it's enough to discredit your argument and shame these leaders into backing down. Face it Lex, the International Meta-human Vigilantism Restriction Act is dead."

"Well then," Luthor swung his legs over the edge of the table and let himself down, checking his reflection in the window. "I suppose you have everything figured out."

"All but one thing," Batman answered. "Why call an emergency session for the vote? You don't have the votes yet, but still had two weeks to buy politicians. It doesn't add up."

Luthor only spared a second's glance at the reflections of League's most feared duo. Superman was child's play by now, he'd grown bored explaining himself to the overgrown boy-scout, but It wasn't often someone got the upper hand on Batman. He would enjoy this.

"Perhaps I was feeling impatient."

"You're many things, Lex. Impatient is not one of them."

A compliment from Superman. Not intended as such, but one took what one could get.

He sighed in mock pity. "You heroes know so much about fighting, but nothing about politics."

"I know you don't win by buying votes."

Luthor just rolled his eyes. _Ignorant, naive imbecile. Still, half-right, though for all the wrong reasons. _ "Indeed, you're right. Though only barely. Politicians are fickle. I can buy them like toys, have them all walk the line, but as soon as their regime or their wealth or country or whatever they value is threatened, their first instinct is always going to be to call the 'magic fix-it people' in the sky who fly down and police the world." He let his scorn creep into his voice towards the end, making it clear how little he thought of the League.

"But they_ trust_ you, you and your band of 'super-heroes.' Answering to nobody, hoarding power and controlling how people use it, the whole world sits vulnerable below you, just waiting for you to either seize control or destroy it."

"The League would never-"

"Of **course **not" He mocked. "After all, you're all just the _paragons _of virtue." He sent a particularly pointed glance at the Batman, who didn't even have the decency to flinch. "But the people believe in you. That's why buying votes was a herring, designed to keep the League busy. The world wouldn't keep that law in place for long, as soon as someone or something frightened their feeble minds you'd be called back with open arms."

"No," Luthor gazed over the skyscrapers of Metropolis. "It's not enough to make superheroes illegal. The people need to fear you more than they fear not having you. They need to see metahumans and vigilantes for what they are: a plague! Menaces, a threat to our very lives!" He settled, straightening his shoulders. "That's how you win votes."

Superman was indignant. "You're going to make them fear the League… Impossible. Our record-"

"I don't need them to fear the league, you fool," Luthor snapped. "I need them to fear all metahumans, League or no. And they will, though earlier than originally scheduled. By tonight, the world will recognize the terrible power hiding under all our noses, and the absurd freedom we've given you to wield it."

"You're going to vilify a well-known metahuman superhero," Batman summarized. "Frame them for some act of mass destruction."

"Not frame them," Luthor corrected. "_Expose_ them. It took me a long while to find the right candidate. Someone of immense power, who can take lives at will, and before another 'hero' could intervene. They needed to be a public figure, internationally recognized, ideally with an endorsement deal or affiliation with some greater team."

"I searched high and low for someone to reshape the world's relationships with 'superheroes,'" Luthor turned and picked up a remote from the table. "But then I realized: why reinvent the wheel? Who better to end the world of superheroes than someone who's already ended the world once before?"

The screen at the head of the table came to life and the three men stood, transfixed by the battle being streamed from a camera in a nondescript warehouse.

Currently, a green bear grappled with Deathstroke the Terminator, snapping at him with massive jaws. The camera focused on a young woman emerging from the shadows, a large chunk of concrete encased in black and floating beside her as she angled for the time to use it.

Superman gasped in realization, while Batman's eyes just narrowed. Superman turned to his analytical counterpart. "She wouldn't…."

Superman had faced intergalactic warlords that didn't make him nervous, but when Batman didn't respond, that scared him.

Luthor grinned. "I see you're aware of Miss Raven."

Superman's jaw was hard. "Enough to know she'd never do anything like what you're talking. We screwed up with her, but she turned it around and did right by us- by everyone. She's a good kid, might be up for membership one day."

The glint in Luthor's eye was disturbing. "I take it you don't know about the Demon's Bargain."

Instinctively, Superman turned to his counterpart. "Batman, what's he talking about?"

Not that anyone but a senior League member could tell, but this was a deeper scowl than usual. "The first rule of Magic: Everything comes at a price. This is especially true for demonic magic. Etrigan gave us a full list of a Demon's abilities, including the Bargain."

He paused, staring at the screen as though willing it to reveal some hidden knowledge. "A Demon can revive the body, mind, and soul of a recently deceased if they are willing to pay the afterlife a sufficiently high tribute: a thousand lives of equal measure."

Superman's eyes grew wide. "And Raven could-"

"No," Batman cut in. "Raven is demi-demon, the rules are different."

Superman relaxed, until the Dark Knight continued.

"I suspect the price for utilizing such magic would be higher."

Kryptonians weren't known for weak constitutions, but Superman could feel his stomach churn.

"How much higher?"

Lex luthor answered for him. "Nobody knows, it's never been done before. But by my best estimations-"

Batman cut in. "Between one and five hundred times as high."

Superman watched as Deathstroke evaded the entangling grip of an 8-foot boa constrictor and leapt into the air, tackling Raven and driving her into the wall of the hangar.

"Half million people…. Raven would never-"

"You're right," Luthor nodded. "Not for just anybody. But the girl has a deep-seated need for a family- understandable for her background, of course. The Titans are the family she never had."

Batman disagreed. "That wouldn't be enough. She swore to me she'd never use this power."

Superman wheeled on his long-time colleague. "You knew?"

"Of course. I gave Nightwing a protocol in case one of the team goes down, just in case."

Luthor hadn't played his last card. "But what if the deceased were more than a teammate? If a young woman with incredible power were to lose the one person who promised her what she never believed possible? Love is such a powerful thing at that age… it can make a person do truly incredible things."

Superman's voice was shaky. "Batman...?"

"We need to get a League member on-site, now."

Even as he said it, Batman knew it was too late. The league was fully deployed doing PR and meeting with world leaders to combat the Anti-Superhero bill. They'd never get somebody on-site in time.

Batman had faced Deathstroke twice before, and ended at a stalemate both times. Deathstroke was the best in the industry.

The man never failed a contract… Not even when that job was to kill a hero, trigger genocide by another, and get them banned from every country in the world.

* * *

Back in Jump City:

Deathstroke turned out to be particularly difficult prey.

Garfield and Raven put everything they had into bringing the villain down, but he'd obviously been prepared. His armor had proven resistant to both Changeling's claws and Raven's energy, and so far neither could determine whether this was the real villain or a highly sophisticated android. If it was the former, they were duty-bound to bring him in alive.

If they didn't have to hold back, this could be over much faster.

They'd tried pinning him under objects, but he always managed to escape before the weight landed.

They tried Changeling grappling with him while Raven swept his legs out from behind, but all they ended up with was a lump on Changeling's head.

Changeling tried binding him as a snake, but Deathstroke's supply of defense tools included an electric shock that broke his concentration and forced him to revert forms.

Changeling shifted into gorilla form and tried to pin the mercenary down. They locked arms, but technique triumphed over strength and Changeling again found himself flying through the air. Raven took the opening to pelt Slade with every object she could mentally reach, but her target was fast and remarkably quick with the bo-staff, and she'd only landed a few hits, none of them severe.

So far they'd avoided taking any serious hits themselves, mostly because whenever Changeling was put on his heels Raven would intervene to keep Deathstroke occupied.

But the Titans were tiring, and their opponent wasn't.

Changeling landed, crouching into a three-point stance when something caught his eye. _That could work…_

* * *

Raven was alternating between assaulting Deathstroke with projectiles and trying to rip off parts of his armor when Changeling appeared behind her.

"Rae, I got a plan. I need you to hold onto this and get it to me the second you see me reach for it. But first, we're going to go close-then-hard. Look for the Starfire trick. Got it?"

Raven couldn't look away from her quarry, but she felt whatever it was press into her side. She nodded, recognizing the battlefield short-hand for one of their most reliable combinations. She wrapped a small tendril of energy around his new tool to hold it in place, and Changeling dove toward Deathstroke as a small bird.

She pulled back her assault to give him an opening, keeping a few objects in reserve in case she got a clear shot, and waited for her signal.

* * *

Changeling thought as he dove. _This guy was going after Raven, and used me to do it…_

**_He's going to regret that. _**

Only a foot over Deathstroke's head, he shifted, whipping a thick, scaled tail into the villain hard enough to send him into the wall, obscured by dust.

Changeling stood in the form of a velociraptor and roared his challenge.

Deathstroke came bounding out of the dust cloud, bo-staff drawn, with a shout to match.

Changeling caught the bo-staff in the small paw of a lemur, riding the staff as it passed through where he'd just stood, then shifted into a gorilla and tore the staff from the mercenary's hands. He huffed, breaking the collapsible weapon over his knee, and tossed the pieces to the side.

His opponent was already on the aggressive again, keeping the fight close so Raven couldn't attack without risking hitting the shapeshifter.

As with Nightwing, Changeling didn't bother deflecting all the blows. Most were only irritants to his larger forms, so he could afford to focus on offense rather than defense.

Slade went for a high kick, so Changeling shifted into a ram and went for a headbut, launching off from powerful hind legs. Slade caught the horns and tried to swing him around, but by the time he pulled he was holding a literal bull by the horns, and Changeling was running full speed, trying to trample the masked man underfoot.

Deathstroke went over the top instead, but as soon as he cleared Changeling's back he found himself directly behind a donkey- primed and ready to kick.

He barely had time to register before he'd been bounced off a steel column and Changeling was coming back at him as a rhinocerous.

Leaping to the side, Deathstroke expected the shapeshifter to ram into the column, but Changeling had instead gripped the bar in two massive human hands and converted the momentum into centrifugal force, landing a hard two-heeled kick to his exposed back.

Deathstroke turned the momentum into a forward handspring, coming up to find a head-sized chunk of black concrete in front of his face and growing.

He rolled backwards, settling into a deep crouch as the concrete flew overhead, but when he looked up he discovered that Changeling and Raven had improved dramatically as a partnership in his absence.

Changeling had used his distraction to rush in below the concrete in the form of a leopard, and now he faced two sets of claws and a mouthful of fangs with nowhere to go-pinned in a crouch by the concrete above.

At this point, one could mark what took place by how many seconds passed.

To start the count at zero seconds, Deathstroke drew a modified taser from his belt and thrust it into the leopard's face.

Except the cat was gone, and in its place was a small squid.

Changeling slipped past the outstretched arm and latched onto the black and orange mask, aiming for the single lens.

At one second, Deathstroke was effectively blinded.

At two seconds, Changeling was escaping in the form of a hummingbird.

At three seconds, a wall of obsidian energy picked the villain up and smashed him into a concrete wall.

At four seconds, Changeling was standing in front of him, his hand outstretched as an object dropped into his grip from a black portal.

At five seconds, Changeling was driving Rose's second katana through Deathstroke's shoulder, embedding it in the concrete wall behind.

The lack of blood told Changeling all he needed to know.

At six seconds, a sasquatch gripped both Deathstroke's arms and ripped them physically from his body.

At seven seconds, the robot bowed its head, seemingly disabled.

At eight seconds, Changeling reverted to human form.

At nine seconds, Raven's glow dimmed from her hands as she released her energies.

At ten seconds, the robot received instructions to strike. This was precisely the opening Deathstroke had been waiting for.

* * *

The count began again as Changeling raised two fists to the sky, celebrating their victory.

At one second, the armless android drew up its legs, supported entirely by the sword embedded in its shoulder.

At two seconds, it kicked out hard at Changeling's exposed back.

At three seconds, Changeling landed, skidding and bruised but otherwise fine, in front of the still-frozen Rose directly beside the deactivated bomb.

At four seconds, Raven noticed the remote- fallen from not-Deathstroke's belt- lying on the floor.

At five seconds, a booted foot came down on the button, and the bomb exploded.

* * *

At three seconds, Changeling landed, skidding and bruised but otherwise fine, beside the 'deactivated' bomb

At three-point-five seconds, Changeling sensed the danger and turned to flee.

At four seconds, he realized that Rose and Jericho were still frozen, unable to escape the oncoming danger.

At four-point-five seconds, an emerald African elephant stood between them and the bomb.

At five seconds, Changeling stared into Raven's eyes across the warehouse with sorrow, and wished her goodbye before the blinding light and pain forced him to close his eyes.

* * *

At four seconds, Raven noticed the remote- fallen from not-Deathstroke's belt- lying on the floor.

At four-point-five seconds, realization dawned as Deathstroke's voice rang through her mind: "You should know by now- I always have a contingency."

At five seconds, she locked eyes with a 14,000-pound elephant as a bloom of fire reflected in his pupils. She could feel the heat approaching even from 80 feet away.

At six seconds, buckshot bounced off her shields, and she realized that Slade had filled the crates with ball bearings, several thousand of which would already be embedded in Changeling's side.

At seven seconds, Raven dove toward the epicenter of the blast, ignoring the residual heat. Jericho's revelation that the bomb was a last-minute construct rang through her mind, offering hope against hope. She was numb to anything else, deaf to the world around her as everything seemed hazy.

The only thing clear was that Changeling lay face-down in human form, blood pooling around him.

She hardly noticed Rose lying a few feet away, similarly face-down and still. All she could think of was how almost 19 months ago, she'd been the one bleeding and filled with buckshot and Garfield had been the one to save her.

She only hoped she could save him now.

Landing beside her teammate, she held out hope. His back looked fine, a little tattered, with some singe marks on his right side, but he'd been worse-

-and then she turned him over.

Changeling's front and right side had been half-destroyed by the force of the explosion. She could see ribs, watch blood spurt as his still-beating heart tried to send blood to muscles that no longer existed.

And somehow, he still looked up at her with a grin.

"Hey, Rae-"

She cut him off, panic creeping into her tone as she called on her healing energies. "Don't talk, stay still, I can still heal-"

His hand gripped her wrist, stopping her mid-thought. "There's only half of me left, Rae."

"That's not true," she begged, fighting to keep her voice steady. "I can-"

"No," he argued weakly. "I'm already gone."

"No!" She almost yelled. "No, you can't… we need you, Garfield. _I _need you…"

She closed her eyes to avoid tears. "You're the best man I ever met. You can't leave."

He coughed twice… Raven recognized his soft laugh underneath. "Only half man, Rae."

His aura began to drain, and Raven lowered her hand, blue light fading.

She felt his hand grip hers. "Hey Rae," Changeling whispered. "How do you keep your girlfriend in suspense?"

His soft chuckling gave way to coughing, a wheezing breath-

And Garfield Mark Logan, also known as Changeling, left this world behind.

* * *

Rose Wilson lay on the concrete floor, eyes clenched tightly shut.

The pain was intense, but she'd been trained to endure worse.

She'd been spared the brunt of the blast by Changeling's quick thinking, and now that her father's directive to kill Mark/Garfield/whoever he was no longer applied, Jericho had retreated to the depths of her mind.

He would have left entirely, but that wasn't an option right now.

She listened as Raven attempted to reassure the man who'd saved her life and arranged for her freedom, but she knew it was hopeless. She feigned unconsciousness as Changeling died, and for a moment, everything was silent.

Then the air chilled, and Rose knew something was happening. She rolled over, shakily opening one eye.

_Shit. T_he memory of her vision flashed back to the front of her mind. _A black dome, expanding to blanket the city… _

Then a cold voice echoed from behind her, and she knew whatever Deathstroke was planning, it was only getting started.

* * *

There was nothing except Garfield.

Rather, Raven wasn't aware of anything except him. Of his body, half-destroyed by the blast as it hovered flat in front of her.

She didn't realize she was six feet off the ground, still in a kneeling position, gripping his hand with both her own as tears leaked from her eyes.

She didn't see the maelstrom of black energy and debris swirling around her.

She didn't see the buckling of the steel that supported the roof above her.

She didn't see Rose scrambling away in fear.

She didn't hear anything… Until Deathstroke spoke.

"You can still save him, Raven."

Two glowing black eyes flew open, then pulsed crimson. "What-"

"I worked for your father, remember?" The android taunted. "His body is still warm, you can bring him back."

Raven didn't even turn her head as a thin blade of energy severed the head from the torso of the android.

But still the head continued. "I promised to destroy you, Raven. So now you face the choice. Live an empty life without him, with your foolish heroic pride, knowing you could have brought him back. Or give up the reputation you've worked so long to build, and bring him back from the beyond."

He paused. "Either way, you'll hate yourself for the rest of your life, and possibly the next. The question is, what would you sacrifice to spend this life with him?"

Raven's eyes flashed black, then white, then red, then black again. A black aura settled over Changeling as her mind was in turmoil…

And then she made her decision.

"I'm sorry, Garfield…"

* * *

Meanwhile, in Nevermore:

Nine aspects felt the shock reverberate through their realms as the reality of Changelings death rang through their collective psyche.

Each one scanned their territory, their memory banks and emotional landscapes, and armed themselves for battle.

Each one arrived in the Conference Room armed for battle, some more literally than others. Each stared at the other, prepared to war for their position, and declared their intent.

To their surprise, each and every one aligned with each other.

There was no time to question, and none of them were so inclined.

Without a word, they rose above the conference table and formed a circle, leaving one space open.

Nine sets of eyes glowed black as each reached out to join hands with the doppelgangers beside them. Only Empathy and Apathy did not join together as the circle began to rotate, slowly but picking up speed with every pass.

Raven joined them then. Appearing as the missing link, she was already moving in agreement with the whole as the colors began to blur together.

In the center rose a new doppelganger: a white-cloaked Raven with four red, glowing eyes. She sat in a lotus position and began chanting a mantra that Raven had sworn against ever uttering. It was an ancient spell, older than humanity itself, and it could only be spoken by a demon.

Or in this case, half-demon.

Raven closed her eyes as a pulse of light blinded her…

* * *

And when she opened them again, she was nowhere.

Or more precisely, she could not see where she was.

There was no ground below her, no sky above her. There was nothing on the horizon in any direction, and when she moved she felt no resistance from the air to suggest that any distance had been traversed. She could traverse for eternity in any direction and she knew she'd never see any difference.

She looked at herself through crimson-tinted vision. Her leotard and cloak were a bright shade- meaning white, rather than her typical dark pallet. The combination meant only one thing: her entire psyche was aligned towards this goal, and this goal required her demonic nature.

She'd known that, but the realization was still sobering.

**THE REALM OF THE DEAD IS NOT MEANT FOR THOSE WITH TIES TO THE LIVING, a** voice or great power spoke, though she could not describe anything about the voice except that it was commanding. **WHAT IS YOUR PURPOSE HERE, DAUGHTER OF TRIGON?**

When she spoke, her voice was tinged with power in turn, and not a hint of meekness. "I am here to bargain for the life of Garfield Mark Logan, also known as Changeling."

For a moment, she received no response, and she wondered if perhaps she had been wrong about the birthright passing to demi-demons.

**THE RIGHT IS YOURS, **the voice returned. **BUT THAT IS A FEAT OF GREAT POWER, FOR WHICH YOUR MAGIC IS ILL-SUITED. THE PRICE FOR SUCH A MIRACLE IS HIGH. WHAT DO YOU BRING IN SACRIFICE?**

Pointed teeth grinned in satisfaction: "One million lives of equal measure."

* * *

A/N: Mwuahahahaha! That's right, I went there... See you with an update soon!

Also, anybody else catch that TNT is coming out with a live-action Teen Titans reboot? Apparently it's got Nightwing, Starfire, Raven, Hawk, and Dove... But no Cyborg or Changeling! Leave a review with your feedback on the chapter and this potential new show, and I'll do my best to respond to everybody!

-TwistedPremise


	22. Raven's Payment

A/N: Woohoo! How was THAT for a whirlwind? That's right, where else are you going to find a chapter that includes Raven VS Slade, Raven &amp; Changeling VS Slade, Changeling gloating about outsmarting Slade, then beating him, then getting killed by him? Also, super-secret conspiracy, Raven going into the afterlife to save Garfield, AND her offering 1 MILLION lives in exchange?

Huff... huff...

That's right, nowhere. My name's TwistedPremise, and I aim to please, torture, and delight in the screams of my audience... through a record-breaking (for this story, anyway) 35 reviews! I love you all, even if you hate me a little bit right now.

This chap was a little harder to write, for some reason... I had trouble getting the tone and sequencing right. But, I like how it ended up (after like, ten drafts) so without further ado, I own nothing of the Teen Titans, so if TNT wants to steal my story and turn it into the first season of the upcoming live-action show "Titans," they're more than welcome to do so.

It'd probably be better than the BB-less crap they're probably working on right now.

-TwistedPremise

* * *

**In Metropolis: **

"I'm telling you, Hawkgirl, we need someone in Jump City **_now_**." Superman was getting frustrated. "What do you mean, you can't get a lock on anyone?"

A pause.

"Yes, I know everybody's meeting with- Yes, I know we gave governments shielding techno- I understand how shielding tech works, I just-

Batman cut in. "Send Superman, get him to Titan Island. Thirty seconds, starting now." He cut the line.

"Titan Island? Why-"

"We have no idea where in Jump City to start looking, and if anyone is going to disarm Raven it needs to be either someone she trusts or Dr. Fate. I'll contact Fate, but we have no guarantee of when or if he will arrive. I need you to clear out whatever's got Nightwing and his team occupied and get them to Raven immediately. Tell him it's Grief Protocol. He'll know what to do."

Superman nodded. _Last time Bruce gave orders like this, Darkseid was involved. _

"And Superman? As soon as Nightwing is en route, clear out. No league appearances, and no entering a potential blast radius. Clear?"

Superman understood, though he didn't like it. Jump City was accustomed to being protected by the Titans, an appearance by the League would only worry people and escalate the situtation. _But that's not his real reason. _

"I can get to her faster," he argued. "Talk her down, I could-"

"No." Batman was resolute. "You can't. And if you end up in the radius-"

Luthor's smug voice interrupted them both. "You're too late."

The last thing Superman saw before the teleporter converted his molecules to light was a live feed as Changeling died.

* * *

Superman rematerialized in a war zone.

Craters pocketed the island, and the burst of high-powered lasers sounded from the other side of the tower. Using x-ray vision, he scanned the battle for signs of the Titans and their leader. Victor Stone- a.k.a. Cyborg, was on the roof, shooting down missiles from what appeared to be a fleet of submarines off-shore before they could hit the tower. The Tamarranean Starfire appeared in the process of destroying submarines. She flew erratically but gracefully, avoiding dense laserfire as she dove in and out of the waves, attempting to punch holes in the pressure-resistant armor.

Finally, Superman found the one he was looking for. Nightwing was using the natural rock formations of the training field as cover while he destroyed robot foot-soldiers attempting to storm the Tower.

What Nightwing couldn't see was the stray missile that had missed the tower and was currently headed his way.

* * *

Nightwing was tiring, but Starfire's efforts destroying submarines before they could release more soldiers appeared to be paying off. The steady barrage of foot-soldiers had slowed to a trickle, and he was picking them off one by one when the explosion went off above him, close enough that he felt the wind from the shock wave. His hand flew to his short-range transponder. "Cyborg, was that you?"

The response didn't come over his communicator. "Actually, that one was me."

Nightwing looked behind him to see an icon of red and blue hovering there, cape flowing in the residual shockwave. "Superman?"

The static of his communicator signaled Cyborg's response. "Superman? The League's here?"

Superman landed in front of Nightwing, face devoid of his normal light-hearted grin. "Batman sent me," Nightwing's face hardened. They'd buried their differences, but Batman sending Superman in the midst of a battle? That was unprecedented… and ominous. "There's more going on here than you know. He says it's Grief Protocol."

Nightwing's mask was impenetrable, even to X-ray vision, but Superman knew those eyes were as wide as any he'd ever seen. Nightwing's hand flew to his ear. "Cyborg, Superman's here, he'd going to help finish the submarines. I'm activating the island defenses, they're depleted but should be enough to secure the door now. Star, I need a lift to the mainland. Now."

Cyborg's voice was worried. "Wing, what's going on? First the League shows up, now you're bailing? You get a lead on Slade?"

"I'll explain everything soon, but right now there's no time. We need to get to Raven before-"

Starfire was barely visible, flying towards them from the open sea when her gasp sounded over the line. "Look! What is…"

Superman turned towards the town to find his deepest fears confirmed.

A black dome was expanding over the city. I began blossoming out to cover not just downtown, but grew as they watched to cover the entirety of the suburban neighborhoods, its radius growing out over the bay towards them. Superman prepared to move as the dome approached, but it stopped just short of Titan Island.

Starfire landed beside Nightwing and Superman and joined them at staring into the black-tinted vision of their city. As though given a silent signal, the submarines ceased firing, and the faint silhouettes of steel against the waves submerged. The few robots on the island deactivated and fell to the ground, and Cyborg turned to witness the spectacle on the mainland.

"We're too late, Star," Nightwing whispered. "It was a distraction, and we fell for it. We weren't the target, Raven was."

"Friend Raven is doing this?" Starfire was quiet, confused. "Why? What is the meaning of this?"

When Nightwing failed to answer, Superman stepped in. "Deathstroke- Slade- was hired by Luthor to make Raven do something terrible… to push her over the limit and take civilian lives-"

Twin exclamations from Starfire and Cyborg drowned him out.

"Friend Raven would never-"

"Ain't no way Rae would-"

"He killed Changeling." Nightwing silenced them both with a whisper. He didn't turn to face them, just continued staring out over the bay. "It's the only way… isn't it?"

Superman closed his eyes and nodded once.

"No-"

"No way the green bean went down-"

"I saw it myself." Superman cut in softly. "There was a bomb. Changeling sacrificed himself…

NIghtwing cut him off.. "Cyborg, open Personal File Nightwing Epsilon Endgame Omega."

There was silence as Cyborg processed the data, comprehension and disbelief warring against each other.

His voice was faint, the confidence fading. "No, Rae would never…"

The black dome before them begged to differ.

* * *

An attractive woman in her mid-thirties and a business suit sat at a news desk as the camera zoomed in on her face.

"Good evening. I'm Sandra Livingston and we interrupt your normal broadcast to bring you a live report from Jump City, where a large black dome of unknown origin appears to have encompassed most of the City proper, as well as sizeable portions of the surrounding suburbs and bay. Live on the scene is John Burgundy. John, what can you tell us about this phenomenon?"

The screen split to show a dark-haired man in downtown Jump City, as well. Behind him, a formerly busy street had become a mass of civilians exiting their cars to stare at the artificially-blackened sky.

"Unfortunately, Sandra, not much. I'm here at the edge of Beachfront Park in Jump City, where eyewitness reports put the origin of the dome somewhere east of Main Street. First appearing only minutes ago- just after ten-o'clock local time- it rapidly expanded to cover most of the city's estimated 1.6 million residents and commuters. So far, we're reporting no power outages, side effects, property damage, or casualties, though there were a few automobile accidents from what appear to be distracted drivers that local authorities are in the process of responding to now.

"Any news on what might be causing this phenomenon?"

"The dome does appear similar in make-up to the signature energy of local hero and member of the Titans- formerly Teen Titans- Raven. Several witnesses describe the sensation of passing through the dome as 'chilling,' which seems to align with accounts of civilians rescued by the elusive young woman."

"Any word yet from the Titans regarding what this might be?"

"No, there's been no indication of a public statement by Nightwing or any of the Titans, but several beach-goers have reported hearing what appeared to be muted explosions from their headquarters in the bay, so it's possible this is part of some ongoing battle the Titans are engaged in, in which case this may be a protective force field, though vehicles have been able to enter and leave it at will."

"Thank you, John-"

"One last thing, Sandra. While the nature of Raven's abilities is still largely unknown, it is worth noting that this is a much larger expression of them than we've ever witnessed before. I think it's safe to say that if this is Raven's doing, it's a feat of unprecedented scale, and that has many civilians worried."

"Thank you, John. Now, while many supporters of the Titans have already taken to social media to express support for Raven and the rest of the Titans, there are those who question the wisdom of letting such high-profile and clearly powerful individuals operate without meaningful oversight from the city-"

* * *

Nightwing stood, helpless, as his team stood trapped on their island.

His communicator chirped, and he flipped it open hopeful that maybe Raven was reaching out, that maybe this wasn't what it looked like... "Raven, Changeling, are you-"

"It's me." Batman's voice interrupted. "I routed your network through the League's satellites, you should be fully operational. I'm pulling Superman to conduct an emergency meeting with the White House. The president trusts him, we need a voice of reassurance there."

Batman's voice lowered, loud enough for only Nightwing to hear. "Dick, this is worse than you know. Luthor's got the United Nations voting to outlaw meta-human vigilantism tonight. He had a video stream in his office, every world leader likely knows Raven's the source. You need to…"

"This is a Titan's matter, we'll handle it internally," Nightwing quipped, his voice tight. "Unless Zatanna or Fate offer their services, the League obviously has bigger issues to deal with."

He cut the transmission, not wanting to hear any more.

Superman caught a look on the young man's face, disturbingly familiar...

He'd seen it on Batman's face, always right before Bruce would do something reckless.

"Don't even think about it, Nightwing." He warned, "Going in there won't-"

* * *

Nightwing flashed back to the Titan's post-apocalyptic party after Trigon had been defeated.

"How do you do it, Robin?" Raven asked, as they looked out the window at the newly-restored Jump City.

"Do what?"

"Keep hoping." She replied, confusion and regret tinting her normal monotone. "After everything that happened, everything I did, how did you still manage to hope it could all work out?"

"Because of you." He replied with confidence he would never admit to lacking. "But you're actually the most hopeful person I've ever met. From the day you were born they said that you were evil. That you were created to do unspeakable things. But you wished for more. You dared to hope that you could be a hero."

* * *

Another memory rose, unbidden:

Changeling sat in the infirmary, in a high-backed chair rigged with sensors monitoring his vital statistics as Raven hovered unconscious over a medical bed.

"You have to remember."

"I'm trying," Changeling half-yelled.

"Try harder. If you can't tell me what happened I have to assume the worst. I have to put you in jail. You _need _to remember."

* * *

The memory of Beast Boy's growl faded into the rumble of Nightwing's motorcycle approaching, auto-pilot bringing it to him thanks to the remote in his gloves.

"I've made the mistake of giving up on a teammate once before," Nightwing whispered, as if only to himself. "I'm not doing it again."

Superman moved to grab the young hero, but the transporter had already locked on. In a burst of light, the Man of Steel disappeared.

Nightwing opened his communicator. "Bumblebee, Jinx, I need Mas y Menos and Impulse on Titans Island as quickly as they can get here. Have them avoid Jump City itself, tell them not to enter the black dome. They'll know it when they see it."

He dropped the line again and keyed up his motorcycle. "Cyborg, I'm going in. If by some miracle this works, we'll need the infirmary prepped and ready to go. If it doesn't, have Mas y Menos and Impulse search the town and get a count."

The "NightCycle" was only twenty feet away when it burst into green sparks.

"You are mistaken if you believe you are doing the rescuing of our friends alone," Starfire's voice was as strong and regal as he'd heard when she gave commands on Tamaran. "We will defeat Slade and help our friends together."

Considering she'd just destroyed his motorcycle, Nightwing wasn't exactly in position to argue.

He did anyway. "Star, I don't want to risk-"

"If this is truly friend Raven," Starfire gestured to the black curtain before them, "then there is no risk. Our friend would not harm us, no matter what Slade might do."

Nightwing just nodded, confidence he knew was probably baseless welling up in her logic.

Starfire grabbed the loops hidden in the fabric behind his shoulders, and they took off into the black.

* * *

A few minutes later, two streaks of yellow approached Titan's Island around the edge of the dome, paying no heed to the water beneath them. They zipped around the island once, twice, then raced inside to find Cyborg prepping the infirmary. Impulse- formerly known as Kid Flash- and the now-16 Mas y Menos stopped to gather their breaths.

"Hey Cy, Where's 'Wing? He called." Impulse huffed out. "And what's with the force field? Jump under attack?"

Cyborg didn't look up as he powered up equipment. "As soon as the field drops, we need you three to search the city. Start with hospitals and homeless hangouts, then densely populated areas and public spaces. Leave residences alone for now, I should be able to boost the tower's sensors to pick up life signs to scan those."

Mas Y Menos looked at each other, confused. Mass spoke for them. "Bien, pero lo que estamos buscando?"

Cyborg's translation program was nearly instantaneous, but he still paused before answering. He didn't- couldn't- look them in the eyes when he replied. "Anyone who's died in the past ten minutes for unexplained causes."

The twins gasped in unison. The Titans were no strangers to civilian casualties, but what he was suggesting…

Impulse asked the question first. "And you want us to search the whole city? To what, count?" Cyborg's non-response was silent affirmation. "How many do you expect us to find?"

Cyborg's voice picked up a hint of hope. "If we're lucky, none."

The twins and Impulse shared a glance.

"And if we're not lucky?"

Cyborg sighed deeply, looking out the window as the black began to recede.

"Too many," his voice was distance. "far, far too many."

* * *

Starfire streaked towards the warehouse Nightwing indicated, aiming for a skylight missing most of its panes.

They crashed through the glass, not bothering to do reconnaissance first, and Starfire gasped at the sight before her.

Raven and Changeling were in the midst of a localized whirlwind of black energy. Through the flying debris Starfire could see Raven floating in a kneeling position, both hands grasping one of Changeling's. Her green teammate was floating on his back the way a body might in the water…

And then Starfire realized… The concrete beneath them was stained with blood… so much blood. She couldn't tell whose blood it was, but there was certainly enough that someone ought to be dead. Changeling's eyes were closed, it didn't look like he was breathing, she could see extensive damage through the storm of black energy.

But that wasn't the worst of it.

Straining against the wind was a young woman in an obvious imitation of Slade's uniform, fighting to get to her friends.

* * *

Nightwing prepared to attack, noting everything at once. A deactivated, headless, limbless Slade-bot was pinned to the wall with a sword, another in a pile of rubble, Raven at the eye of the energy storm , Ravager fighting to get to her...

_I need to get close to Raven, calm her down. Starfire can handle Ravager... _

He drew a breath to call out to Starfire when the wind froze, causing them all to stumble...

* * *

And Raven _howled. _

It was a scream of pain, of loss and heartbreak and sorrow unspeakable. It was a cry of determination, of rage and desperation…

With the howl the wind raged again, more fierce than ever, a maelstrom of tornadic energy blocking Raven from them.

Black pulses flew from the center of the storm, forcing all three witnesses back despite their best attempts at bracing. Faster and stronger the pulses came as Raven's voice grew raw, never lowering in intensity or volume.

The primal scream and the rushing of wind drowned out Nightwing's call to Starfire, who was currently flying as hard as she could towards her mystic teammate… but never moving forward.

The scream lasted longer than anyone's lungs could possibly have supported. Nightwing was certain his hearing had failed him, or that the storm had somehow replicated the sound, but he could have sworn that the scream was accompanied by the echoing tones of a wolf...

And then the scream ended, and the storm stilled, leaving only a cloud of dust where the eye of the storm used to be.

Nightwing released his grip on the column he'd anchored to as Starfire flew towards their friends. He set off in pursuit, unsure what he hoped to find.

_Please Raven, tell me you found a way out of this…_

* * *

Four red eyes stared into the endless realm as a million holograms danced before them. One million lives, each filled with love, passion, duty, fear, lust, and joy. One million… each one Raven's choice among a population far larger, selected for diversity and out of hope that they would be enough… enough to bring Garfield back.

The holograms danced in silence, unaware of their pending judgment.

**THIS IS NOT THE REQUISITE PAYMENT FOR A LIFE SUCH AS THIS. **

The voice was unflinching, expressionless, devoid of any character. It simply _was. _

And it took issue with her offering.

Raven took issue with it, in turn. Her voice echoed with power in response, a tone of boldness and assuredness. "The payment is lives of equal measure. These are the only equivalent lives available."

**THE NATURE OF THESE LIVES-**

"Is precisely aligned with his," Raven argued. "Garfield Mark Logan lived by instinct, driven by them to live with greater joy and sorrow than any creature of logic. When he lived as he desired, he did so the same way they do, with absolute abandon. They relish the moment no one else can, for to him and them, the moment is all that exists. Garfield was least himself when he denied this, and lived his life most when he lived it as they do."

One particular hologram caught her eye. It depicted a soon-to-be-mother preparing to give birth despite knowing it could- would- kill her. "There- that was the sacrificial love, the nature that drove him to put his life on the line every single day."

Another showed a homeless traveler, desperate for food, attacking another and leaving him unconscious in an alley while he escaped with stolen possessions. "That was the ruthless drive- the hunger he channeled toward earning the affection of his surrogate father… affection he fought and hungered for like food or air."

Finally, another specter depicted a clearly injured child. Bruised, limping, and with her hair torn away in places, it was clear she'd been abused as she flinched when introduced to a new family… one obviously full of love where she could heal and grow. But still she ran and shivered, hiding in a corner.

"And that," Raven's harsh voice threatened to break, "Is the fear of rejection that drove him to keep himself hidden from- from what he desired most. The abuse that forced him to run and hide, the fear, the pain, the feeling of worthlessness…"

She paused, collecting herself. _Pain of betrayal and rejection I've known firsthand… we both hid because of it, it was only by going back and embracing our underlying, instinctual affection for each other that we broke through our fear. _

She continued, emboldened. "These lives: for anyone else they would not compare. But Garfield was unique, and for him these are the only lives of equal measure."

Her tone commanded: "I have offered twice beyond what ought to satisfy my blood-right. Now, return Garfield Mark Logan to the land of the living, sound of mind, body, and soul and take these in atonement."

There was silence, as the voice of judgment deliberated.

**GIVEN THE UNIQUE NATURE OF THE DECEASED, THIS OFFERING WILL SATISFY THE CONDITIONS OF YOUR BLOOD-RIGHT…**

Relief hit Raven like air to a drowning person-

**BUT BE WARNED: THIS TYPE OF OFFERING WILL ONLY BE ACCEPTED ONCE. SHOULD YOU ATTEMPT THIS AGAIN, THE MORE TRADITIONAL PAYMENT MUST BE MADE.**

Raven merely nodded, understanding. _It was a risk this time, I suppose twice would be too much to ask. _

With her nod, the pact was sealed...

and death descended on Jump City.

One by one, the holograms flickered, then blinked out. As they did, Raven watched- felt- each individual perish, their lives simply extinguished by a combination of her demonic energies and the will of the afterlife.

It started with the three she'd addressed, as she watched them blink out in sequence.

First, a Callobius severus- a matriphagous spider- died shortly after giving birth... two days before her normal time. Her children- already destined to eat her body upon hatching- would find her less appetizing, but would likely still survive their tender first few days where she was their only sustenance.

Second, a bone-thin terrier curled up under a dumpster with his newly-acquired gains: a bone stolen from the neighborhood schnauzer who'd taken it along when he forayed under the fence. Unlike the schnauzer, the terrier had no home, nowhere to procure another bone… He'd just begun to take pleasure in his new treat when a particularly chilled wind took his breath away.

Finally, a kitten cowered behind a dresser, fearful of the shadows of children who wanted to pet her. She was only a year old, but she knew enough to fear humans. Her last owners had taught her that quite well…

Raven watched as the kitten's heart raced, beating faster and faster… until it stopped altogether. She may well have grown to understand the love and kindness the earnest children desired to give her, she'd never experienced being stroked and cradled and fed scraps from the table…

Or she may never have outgrown the scars of her first home.

_She'll never know now…_ Raven watched as a field of lives blinked out in rapid succession.

Jump City was a big place. Over a million citizens, not counting residents outside the city proper, called this city home.

But as Changeling himself was so fond of pointing out: there were more insects per acre than humans on the face of the earth.

And Raven had far more than an acre to work with.

Swarms of insects, including entire colonies of ants and termites and wasps, more spiders than any citizen was comfortable knowing about, all passed away without warning or fanfare.

They weren't hard to find. The parks and alleys alone hosted millions, if not billions of insects all buzzing or burrowing in the background of the city.

And Raven's reach extended beyond insects. Raven selected representatives from the rat-infested alleys, the seagulls and pigeon-crowded power lines, minnows and all manner of crustaceans from the bay, geckos and lizards from the woods just outside of town.

And yes, Raven included dogs and cats and snakes and a coyote who'd meandered too close to town. She tried to limit her selection to wild animals or strays, including entire kennels already scheduled to be put to sleep, but to maintain her "equal measure" argument she needed to include as many of the larger species Changeling favored as she could get. There were pigs and cows and sheep from nearby farms, even animals from the Zoo. She passed over young or sole representatives of a species, but reasoned that they hyena pen, lion and gorilla cages, and several other well-populated corrals could make do with a member or two fewer.

Raven did this all with four red eyes, but full control. Her heart broke with every selection, but watched as a field of holograms winked out one by one.

Only when the last specter blinked out did the voice speak.

**RETURN TO THE LAND OF THE LIVING, DAUGHTER OF TRIGON, YOUR BELOVED IS RETURNED. THE TOLL ON HIS BODY AND SPIRIT WILL KEEP HIM UNCONSCIOUS FOR SEVERAL DAYS. **

Raven closed her several eyes and felt the toll of her exertion hit her. Her throat felt raw, and every muscle felt spent. She'd be lucky if she woke for several days, herself.

When she opened her eyes again the warehouse had returned to its normal dark hue, free of red overlay. The last thing she saw as she passed out was the sleeping- breathing- form of Changeling in front of her.

As she fell, she heard the distinct whisper of fear.

_What if he doesn't forgive me?_

* * *

Starfire braced one hand out before her face as she passed through a cloud of dust…

Changeling lay on his back, mouth open wide as Raven lay sprawled across him as though shielding him with her body, her head on his chest.

It was such a peaceful picture that Starfire almost didn't recognize the significance of it.

_X'hal, _she gasped. _Friend Changeling is… unharmed? And breathing?_

Indeed, where Changeling's body had been half-destroyed was now a full-formed body, as though nothing had happened to it at all.

Starfire heard a clatter from a pile of rubble as Ravager emerged from where a pulse of energy had thrown her.

Starfire turned, fury glowing green in her eyes.

_This is the daughter of Slade, the one who is responsible for harming Changeling. _Starfire prepared for battle.

Nightwing appeared by her side, placing two fingers on Changeling's neck, then Raven's, confirming their pulses. He stood beside her and drew his telescoping bo-staff and they readied themselves to fight…

* * *

Both Titans froze mid-leap when Rose's exposed eye flashed green and her sword dropped from her hands. "Identification Jericho, Titan Oh-four-four Epsilon Beta Muon." Her voice was… off… for her appearance somehow. "We surrender. You need to get Raven and Changeling to the infirmary, I don't know what happened, but he was dead five minutes ago."

Every instinct told Nightwing this was a trick. _Jericho's with Titans North, and we can't trust anything Ravager says. _

But if she wasn't going to fight, that was fine by him.

"Star, get Raven and Changeling to the infirmary." His voice was hollow as he whispered. "Once Raven's stable, we'll move her to the safe room... and put a lock on the outside." He turned his attention to Ravager as he keyed the T-ship for an automated pick-up. "I'll interrogate Ravager, meet you back there. Have a holding cell prepped."

As Starfire flew off with their teammates he noticed that she flew more naturally. He wished he could feel joy enough to fly at the moment, but he'd settle for hope that Ravager wasn't lying, that Jericho actually was there and could tell them what happened.

Nightwing clipped sedative-laced handcuffs around Ravager's wrists. They wouldn't knock anyone unconscious, but they tended to take the fight out of non-metahumans. "Okay Jericho, if you're in there, you can come out now."

For the first time, Ravager looked directly at Nightwing and opened both eyes. One eye glowed green, the other was murky red. Blood seeped out and stained her mask from what appeared to be a bullet hole in her right cornea.

"I'd love to," the hesitant voice quipped, "but the door's blocked."

* * *

A/N: Okay! So, Raven's not a mass-murderer, at least not by most definitions... But what will Changeling think of this sacrifice of his beloved animals? Also, as hinted at earlier in the past chapter, a piece of debris and/or a ball bearing from the explosion did hit Rose in the eye- effectively trapping Jericho in her mind! This is my spin on the whole "Rose Wilson loses an eye like her father" bit, I hope you like the parallel to Slade having taken Jericho's voice. (A detail nobody commented on from last chapter.)

Speaking of which, how did only ONE person comment on Changeling's 'final' joke? I thought that was inspired, myself...

Anyway, please leave me a review with your feedback! Rant at me, ask me a question about a plot hole you noticed, tell me you hate me, say you want to make sweet love to my writing style, tell me you watch "arrow" too and actually caught the "mirakuru" reference, whatever you like, I freaking LOVE reviews!

As usual, I respond to most reviews via PM,

-TwistedPremise


	23. Natural

A/N: STOP RIGHT THERE!

Before you go on, note that I have removed the "no lemons" descriptor in my summary...

"But Twisted," you say, "I thought you wouldn't write Lemons."

"That's right," I respond, "but the story called for it, so I had to get creative..."

I found another BB/Rae shipper with a delightful Lemon misplaced in the 'Rated T' section, and realized that their writing style was highly compatible to mine. I offered this person- WordSpark37- the opportunity to collaborate on a lemon for Raven's Howl... and they accepted. We worked together to weave their smut and citrus into my narrative, and the result is below... Don't say I didn't warn you.

So, major shout-out to WordSpark37! Their story is now Rated M and has chapter four posted- which I beta'd- so when you're done here I highly recommend you check out the BB/Rae story "Daydreams."

Now, my alias again is TwistedPremise, and I own nothing. Actually, even less than nothing, because this chapter is a collaboration, so we share the ownership of nothing... it's complicated.

Enjoy!

-TwistedPremise

* * *

"-so again Sandra, it's been fifteen minutes since the collapse of the mysterious black dome, and while we have noted increased Titan activity in the form of Impulse and Mas Y Menos racing through Jump City, we are reporting no casualties, property damage, or other notable repercussions from whatever caused this unusual event-"

A coffee mug smashed through the television screen and the glass shattered, ending the stream.

Lex Luthor stood with both hands on the conference table, eyes narrowed in rage.

"How? The plan was foolproof! The green one DIED, she brought him back, I saw the Tameranean fly off with them both, so WHERE ARE THE CASUALTIES?!"

Behind him, a dark, low voice emitted a sound so rare most League members didn't believe it existed… Batman was laughing.

Luthor whirled, furious. "What, exactly, is so funny?"

The gravel-filled voice was back in control in an instant, but not out of sheepishness. "She beat you."

"No, it's not possible," Luthor argued, pacing as his mind scoured everything for an explanation. "The contract is iron-clad, the magic is sound: she needed half a million lives, her range was limited, where are they? At home in their beds? Is there a delay?"

"You forgot something."

"Not possible. I studied her thoroughly. Her psychological profile, history, abilities; I know her strengths, her weaknesses, Deathstroke knows more about her demonic magic-"

"Not about her, about him."

That froze Luthor in place.

Batman's tone suggested he'd caught a child with their hand in the cookie jar. "Why did you target Changeling?"

"Ravager's intelligence suggested he was the only one close enough to trigger the Bargain." Luthor was growing impatient. "But what does the deceased matter? The cost-"

"Is in lives _of equal measure to that of the deceased,_" Batman emphasized. "And the deceased was Changeling: the animorph."

Realization dawned in Luthor's eyes. "No, not possible. The afterlife would never accept-"

"The afterlife takes and gives as it sees fit, according to its own rules. If she made a compelling case-"

"He's as good as human-"

"His DNA stopped being human many years ago." Batman quipped. "And if you'd done your profile on him as well as you had on her, you'd know that he's a special case."

Luthor snarled, refusing to accept to defeat. "It doesn't matter, the United Nations saw her power. They saw her-"

"Use that power to save someone and avoid harming civilians. The League will convince them that power like hers belongs in a network where it can be trained and monitored, used to benefit humanity. That your plan would drive people like her underground until they emerged as a threat, not a benefit."

Luthor's mind reeled as he crafted speeches, mentally orchestrated resources and arguments and wealth….

And realized Batman was right: there'd be no convincing the world Metahumans were a threat so long as there wasn't a body count.

His posture shifted imperceptibly as he struggled to maintain a position of power. "So now what?" His reflection sneered at the vigilante behind him. "Are you going to _arrest_ me?" His scorn was clear even through quiet tone.

"No." Luthor's eye peaked as he watched the dark knight turn. "I'm going to arrest Deathstroke."

Luthor nearly rolled his eyes, until Batman paused in the doorway.

"Then I'm going to tell Raven and Changeling who was really behind his death. I'll wait one week, then be back to arrest whatever is left of you afterward."

An image flashed before Luthor's eyes: a snarling were-beast and a four-eyed mage pursuing him through a dark alley…

By the time the vision faded, the dark knight was gone. Luthor keyed up his intercom.

"Mercy, I need travel arrangements. I need to disappear for a while."

* * *

**Eight days later, in Titan's Tower.**

Cyborg had perfect memory. At a whim, he could pull up any segment of any day in the past ten years and tell you exactly where he was, what he was doing, and what was going on around him.

For any moment in the past three years, he could project a three-dimensional hologram of his environment from his right shoulder.

Yet somehow, his memory of the past week would still be blurry.

He remembered Starfire half-destroying the door to the infirmary as she flew in with Raven and Changeling- one under each arm.

He remembered Mas Y Menos explaining in rapid Spanish that they couldn't find any dead bodies… just a lot of dead birds. Impulse added in a surprising number of stray dogs and cats, too.

He remembered Nightwing bringing Ravager into a holding cell in the basement, standing by as she explained how Slade had manipulated and drugged his own daughter into becoming one of the world's most prolific assassins… and then her visible eye turning green as Jericho explained how Changeling had called him in for backup- to verify Rose's story, override her drug, and get the upper hand on Slade.

He remembered wondering about the time between the café and Slade's attack- when Raven and Changeling had disappeared to do who-knows-what before showing up to confront Slade- but nobody knew.

He remembered standing in front of no few than thirty-five news cameras as Nightwing and Superman announced that Raven and Changeling were injured in a battle with Deathstroke- a battle where Raven negated the effects of a bomb near downtown Jump by spreading her energy over as large an area as possible.

He remembered one reporter asking about "damage to the local ecosystem"- how Nightwing explained it away as the result of Slade's attack on the tower and residual energy from the bomb possibly effecting smaller wildlife: an effect he was sure Raven did her best to minimize.

He remembered operating on Ravager, removing the debris from her right eye lest it get infected and risk further damage. He remembered the sorrow in her remaining eye when he told her- them- that the damage was irreparable.

He remembered Arsenal showing up with a sample of Mirakuru and a vial of antidote, which they then compared with the strain in Ravager's blood to tailor to her system.

He remembered Raven waking up… four days after the explosion.

He remembered how hollow her eyes were, how she only showed any signs of responding when she saw Changeling breathing. He remembered how her breath hitched, her stuttering gasps, the monitor cracking, and her disappearance to meditate….

He remembered anxiously sitting by his best friend's bedside for hours, _days_ on end, using extra power cells and coffee to stay awake and confirm Changeling's vitals were stable.

He remembered getting frustrated that Raven wasn't there, wasn't trying to heal her teammate, to wake him up.

He remembered her response when he asked why.

"He likes to sleep in. Let him." Her monotone cracked. "He'll wake up when he's ready."

He remembered her whisper, low enough she didn't expect him to hear. "Maybe with time, he'll forgive me."

And then she was gone again.

He remembered how Nightwing and Starfire spent nearly every hour on patrol, taking shifts sleeping so someone was always monitoring the city.

He remembered everything, and nothing.

Because all he could care about at each moment was making sure the EKG kept beeping….

* * *

Changeling didn't like hospitals.

The smell of disinfectant assaulted his enhanced senses, the chemical cleaners in the air burned his eyes. They were always cold, the beeping of machines was irritating, and there was just something _wrong_ about being in a room where you were the only thing alive above the microscopic level.

Needless to say, when he woke up in the Titans Infirmary the first thing he tried to do was leave.

"Woah there, man," Cyborg cut him off with a palm planted firmly on his chest. "You're not going anywhere. Your vitals are good, but you've been unconscious way too long to just hop up and walk out."

Changeling slumped back on the bed, knowing better than to argue with Cyborg in full-out "doctor mode."

"I'm just going to ask you a few questions, we'll do a quick physical exam, and we'll see about getting you out of here," Cyborg continued, turning to the work bench. "In the meantime, you should eat." Cyborg pulled a tray out of the small refrigerator with what looked like a cold soup and steamed vegetables.

Changeling's stomach growled, and he was suddenly aware of how hungry he was. "Thanks," he grinned sheepishly, "I feel like I could eat my way through another Nufu invasion." Cyborg put the tray in a small heating oven- which would be thoroughly cleaned afterward- as Changling sat up.

"You cooked for me?" Changeling's light tone and false surprise were intentional… Cyborg was moving slowly, and his grin was melancholic, like he was focused on something deep and sad.

It worked, Cyborg couldn't resist the tease. "Don't get used to it, String Bean. Starfire offered her pudding and I didn't want to have to baby-sit you through food poisoning, too."

Changeling just chuckled as Cyborg handed him the tray and his voice dropped.

"Welcome back, man. Wasn't right without you."

Neither one spoke for a second, until Cyborg reached for his tablet. "How do you feel?"

"I feel fine, really. Just a little… thin, maybe? Like Neo, you know?" He adopted a confused tone. "Why do my eyes hurt?-"

"-Because you've never used them before." Cyborg finished the quote for him, turning to his tablet. "Interesting…"

"How long was I out?"

Cyborg didn't answer.

"How long, Cy?"

The half-mech man sighed, weariness finally setting in. "Eight days, man."

Changeling stilled as the realization hit. "Eight days…?" He set the plate aside and stood before Cyborg could stop him.

"Where's Raven?"

Cyborg knew that tone… that was the tone of determination that rivaled Nightwing's or Raven's. When Changeling set his mind to something, it was impossible to stop him.

But he had to try. "Hey man, look, I get you wanna get out of here, but you're not in any condition-"

"I'm fine. Where's Raven?"

Cyborg had been hoping to avoid this. He put a hand on his friend's noticeably thinner shoulder... "How much do you remember?"

"Everything."

Cyborg was surprised, from what Raven had told them he expected significant memory loss. "The explosion?"

"Everything."

_Okay, so he remembers blacking out… how do you explain to a guy that he died and that Raven did… that… to bring him back? _"Okay, man… here's the deal. When that bomb went off, it didn't just knock you out."

Changeling's face was unreadable, so Cyborg continued. "Raven says… she says you_ died_, man. Like- no CPR, no AED gonna help you, she says you were-"

"I know, Cy." Changelings voice was quiet but harder than iron. "I remember everything."

Raven floated over the rocks, allowing the gentle crashing of waves to lull her mind into silence. The moon was bright, reflecting silver on the wave caps that only a week ago had concealed the submarines which assaulted their island. The ground was pockmarked with craters, mostly on the edges of the island where the blast was too far to threaten the tower.

The land was scarred from conflict, but the water was peaceful, and Raven was in desperate need of some peace right now.

She didn't sense him approach, he was just… there. She didn't reach for his emotional state, just let it brush against her. _It's all so… reserved. _She noted. _No strong sense of anything but resolution, but resolution to do what? Is he shielding from me?_

She broke the silence. "Good to see you're awake."

His voice wasn't bright and cheery, but it wasn't angry either. It was… gentle, but distant. "Yeah, apparently dying puts you out of commission for a while. Go figure."

She kept her eyes over the bay. "I'm glad you're okay."

"You say that like you didn't have anything to do with it."

His tone wasn't accusatory, but she felt like it was. Regardless, her understated greeting clearly wasn't going to get her out of the conversation he wanted to have.

Raven fought down fear with deep, even breaths. Behind her, something in Changeling's psyche softened, and she felt him move. He sat down beside her, closer than normally comfortable, but not touching.

His voice was conversational, if one were conducting a particularly solemn conversation.

"They let me watch."

Raven blinked, not understanding. "Who?"

Changeling shrugged. "I don't know. I never saw them either, just the voice. It told me to wait, that my arrangements were not complete, so I did…"

Raven looked over at him in confusion. His eyes were distant in memory.

"…And then you showed up."

Raven's eyes grew wide as she realized. _He saw. He saw me, saw me bargain for his life… sacrifice one million animals, creatures he's become…_

His head turned towards her and Raven looked away quickly.

"How did you know it would work?" His voice was free of judgment, approval, disgust, forgiveness… of _everything. _

She sighed. "I didn't." She paused. "But I had to try. You gave me the idea."

She could feel the confusion roll off him.

"'Only half man, Rae'" she quoted, remembering his penultimate words. "You were joking, of course, but it gave me an idea. I doubled the payment, partially because so many of them were insects, partially to cover your 'other half,' and hoped it would be enough."

The both gazed out over the bay, pausing to gather their thoughts before she spoke again.

"It almost wasn't, and it won't work again, but I had to try."

For a while the only sound was the crashing of waves.

"I'm sorry, Garfield, I-"

He stood quickly, cutting her off.

Suddenly, Changeling was replaced by a green kingfisher who flew low over the rocks. He dipped down quickly and returned, a silver fish in his beak.

He deposited the flapping silver fish on the rocks in front of her, then reverted to human form.

Then Changeling did something she'd never seen before: he reached down and quickly drove a sharp claw through the fish's head and wiggled it from side to side, piercing the brain and killing it instantly.

He sat back down beside her.

Raven thought she'd never be more surprised than she was at that moment.

She was wrong.

"Did you know the Bargain requires the approval of the person being revived, too?"

* * *

Raven was stunned.

She considered herself an expert in the occult and Magical arts. Outside of perhaps Etrigan and Morgan La Fey, there wasn't a person on this planet who knew more about demonic magic than her.

_A conditional clause to the Demon's Bargain unknown to Demons? Impossible… _

The idea that Changeling would have approved the death of one million innocent creatures to bring him back? Even more so.

_Wasn't it?_

* * *

Changeling sat in his same old spot, the one where his feet used to dangle where they now rested comfortably, as Raven actually _stammered. _

"What- What do you… How?"

Changeling snorted. "Apparently, it's a demi-demon thing. They said Demon magic is normally strong enough to override the wishes of the dead, but since you're only half, they asked me if I wanted to come back… if I accepted the sacrifice."

Raven paused, processing. "And you said yes?"

Changeling closed his eyes, nodding.

"Why?"

"Because it was natural."

"That doesn't-"

"Your cloak was white."

Now Raven was really confused, and more than a little frustrated. "What does my cloak have to do with anything?"

Changeling seemed mesmerized by the silver undulations of the sea. "The first time I saw your white cloak was in your head, when you pulled all those little-you's into a bigger-you to fight your dad. They all worked together to beat the Red one, and then when the Red one joined, you turned blue again."

"I've seen you in blue, pink, grey, green, and red, and I know you've got others… But the white only shows up when the pieces work together. You said in the forest that those little-you's are like your instincts, your basic emotions. If you're there, bargaining for my life wearing white, that must mean that all your instincts are working together, that all of you was willing to make that sacrifice… including the big-you."

Raven nodded. It wasn't the most eloquent explanation, but he'd gotten it basically right… _He understands more than he lets on. _

"There's something about animals most people don't get, Rae. There's no real _right _or _wrong_ in the animal kingdom. Like this."

Changeling reached forward, grabbing the fish he'd killed and tossing it up in the air. Immediately a seagull swooped from circling above and caught the specimen in its beak, carrying it off to eat.

"Hunting that fish, Rae, was unnecessary. But was it wrong? To the fish and the seagull, that question doesn't exist- they don't work that way. They only know what's _natural_. They saw a hungry kingfisher and expected me to hunt because that's a kingfisher's instinct when they're hungry. The fishes' natural instinct was to hide, and it tried. The gull's instinct was to take the free meal, and it did."

He paused, reflecting on the concept. "You said it yourself; they live by instinct, and I kind of do too."

Raven didn't understand. "But what I did…. I'm not an animal, and what I did wasn't _natural_-"

"That's not what I saw. Every part of you wanted to bring me back, and you found a way to do it that didn't break your moral code… Of course it was natural."

"But even if it was 'natural,' that was one _million _innocents, Garfield-"

"To them, there are no 'innocents,' Rae." Changeling's tone held no emotion, even as his eyes softened. "Do you remember when I was telling you about when I first started going to the forest? How I tried to cover my tracks?"

She nodded, struggling to follow his jump in topic.

He sighed. "I had to bury deer, Rae, deer the Beast- I- killed not because I was hungry or angry, but because my instincts said to _hunt." _His voice grew quiet. "I hunted deer to distract myself from wanting to pursue you, and for a while, it worked. Because I was following the instincts to hunt, to pursue and conquer."

His far-off tone returned to the present. "By our definition, all animals are innocent unless they attack us. In nature, there are no innocents. You kill when you need to- when your instincts tell you it's necessary- and the world keeps turning. That deer wasn't innocent, it was lower than me on the food chain and I needed to hunt. It's how everything works, Rae, except humans."

Raven followed his logic… to a point. "I'm not an animal."

"I'm not saying you are. But like me, you're not just human, either. We embrace our humanity, sure, but even humans have basic instincts, and we're hardly just human. We're… we're _primal, _Rae, and sometimes the primal can't be ignored."

Raven couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You're saying it's okay that I killed one million animals, who did nothing to deserve it, because my 'instincts' told me to, and they're lower than me on the food chain?"

"No." Changeling admitted, steel in his voice. "I'm saying I let you do it because it was Natural, and that's the only rule of nature- the only standard they know. If you went back and tried to apologize to them… they wouldn't understand. The only thing 'wrong' in their world would be to kill for no reason, and you clearly had a reason. One in line with your entire being, from your logic to your emotions."

Changeling paused. "I approved the Bargain because I wanted to come back. There's so much I haven't gotten to do yet, I'm not ready to leave. I approved the bargain because you wanted me back with everything you had, with the same protective instinct that let the Beast save you in the forest a year and a half ago..."

"And I approved the bargain because every single creature that you offered in payment lived and died by one principle: follow your instincts. If you'd broken that rule- if you'd killed for no reason, or if you'd been conflicted in your decision- you'd have done wrong by them, and I'd still be dead. But you obeyed their rule, you killed only when your instincts and need demanded it."

He turned to look at the lights of Jump City. "If there had been even one human among the million, the rules would have been completely different. Humans don't live and die by instincts or nature, we have a larger code against that kind of killing. But what you did wasn't against the natural order, it was more natural than just about anything anyone's ever done… so while I wouldn't want you to do it again, I'm not mad that you did."

Relief welled up in Raven as the knowledge that he wasn't angry at her resonated through her psyche.

But some things didn't add up.

"I've never seen you so much as swat a fly," she argued, her quiet monotone particularly detached and distant. "You don't eat meat, you abhor cages and animals in shelters- never mind euthanasia- how can you be okay with this? It's one _million-"_

"One million is nothing."

She could only stare in shock.

"I saw the ghost-thingies Raven. There were what, nine hundred thousand insects and spiders in that mix? You included worms and parasites, do you have any idea how many of those there are in a five-mile radius? You could have met your quota with your eyes closed!"

Changeling shook his head. "Look, I'm not happy you had to do it, but I'm actually kind of proud how you spread out the impact. I mean, you probably didn't even touch half the stray dogs in town, and the bird and fish populations will be back to normal in a couple months, at most. There are so many bugs in Jump nobody's ever going to notice such a small change in population, heck, you even left the zoo mostly alone. There are construction projects in town that cause more damage than that, Rae."

He settled down, his expressive movements stilling. "As for my whole not-eating-meat perspective on it: they didn't suffer. More than anything else, I can't stand to see animals suffer. It breaks their code, you know, to be treated cruelly. There's no instinct for that kind of abuse in the wild. But what you did… they didn't feel pain, they didn't starve, they weren't scared or injured. All in all, not a bad way to go."

Undoubtedly, he was thinking about his own death… of the pain and heartbreak of his own demise. _It does give some perspective to the question of how one dies, _Raven concluded.

He debated continuing, she could feel his conflict before he spoke again. "Can I tell you a secret, Rae?"

Raven didn't know how to respond. The idea of Changeling keeping secrets was still surprising to her, only a few weeks ago she'd have sworn he was an open book… and a secret he had to ask before confiding? That had to be deep…

She nodded, and he must have seen it from the corner of his eye.

"I used to eat meat a lot when I was a kid."

Raven blinked. She didn't know where he was going with this, but she had a feeling there was a bigger story behind the confession...

She was right.

"After I turned green, I was always hungry for the stuff. I'd eat it raw, sneak into the fridge and try to get away with a steak the size of my head… I had a particular fondness for lamb, but it really didn't matter. If it bled, I ate it. Seemed like all I ate was meat…"

"But it did weird things to me."

Raven felt the regret of a painful memory resurfacing in his aura, heard it in his voice.

"I couldn't stop," he confessed, straining to remain detached. "I was aggressive, I was angry, I just wanted to hunt and eat, I started killing bugs as snacks…."

He looked down on his hands as the strain gave way to raw, painful regret.

"I… I bit Rita."

Raven paled. She'd felt the affection between them, she knew Elasti-girl was like Garfield's mother…

He continued, interrupting her shock.

"Mento banned meat from the Doom Patrol for a month, made everyone go vegetarian. I went through withdrawal- for a few days Cliff was the only one who could bring me food because I'd attack anyone who got close."

The pain in his voice faded, but only just. "After two weeks, I settled down and we realized it was better for me to go vegetarian. Now, after learning about the animals and what they go through to produce meat, after spending more time as pigs and sheep and cows, the idea of eating another animal is normally disgusting…"

His voice was so quiet, Raven wasn't sure she was meant to hear it. "…but every now and then, when the predator instincts are really strong, there's nothing that sounds better."

Changeling's whispered confession barely reached her, and she could feel his disgust at himself for even this slight weakness.

He was coming around to the point, and Raven heard his tone shift to the present as his aura pushed the memories aside and asserted confidence in the present.

"I know about instincts, Rae. Which ones you can suppress, which ones are okay to let go. The ones that will destroy you if you let them out… and the ones that will destroy you if you don't."

"I'm not going to tell you it was all okay and you should do it again, but I'm not going to tell you it was wrong, either. Sometimes when you're dealing with nature, things are neither. They just _are_, and the question of whether it's right or wrong boils down to instinct and need."

Neither moved as silence reigned again. Raven watched as a few fish jumped between them and the city, the town's lights bouncing off their scales in flashes.

"If you feel guilty," Changeling offered, "I can think of a few shelters who would love to have you make a public appearance. You know, stir up donations and adoptions..." He tapered off. "But if it makes you feel better: I'm glad you did it."

It did, if only slightly.

He continued. "If I didn't agree it was necessary- or want to be here just as bad as you wanted me back- I would have said no. But if our roles were reversed… If you died and every instinct in me knew that I could bring you back by hunting down a million animals… I'd do it."

A weight lifted from Raven's chest, though she knew she'd be doing more than a few public appearances before her atonement was complete. For now though, it was enough to know she was forgiven.

There was one thing left unresolved, though.

"You never answered the question."

Changeling just looked over at her, confused.

"What question?"

"'How do you keep your girlfriend in suspense?'"

* * *

The only noise was a pair of crickets and the dull lapping of waves…

Until Changeling's rolling chuckle rumbled out of his chest, building to a full-bodied laugh.

One corner of Raven's mouth lifted, a small crack in her stoic façade as she reveled in the mirth rolling from his aura.

Changeling laughed until his eyes watered before he finally regained control.

He wiped a heavy drop from his eye. "Oh, so that was it, huh? You just brought me back so you could hear the punch line?"

She couldn't help the mischievous inspiration that hit her in the moment. "That, and one other reason."

Changeling's eyebrow peaked. "And what might that b-mmmph"

* * *

Raven was making a habit of surprising him. Two hugs and now a kiss? He'd have to sneak into Nevermore and find someone to thank.

The gentle kiss grew stronger, deeper as Changeling responded. What started out gentle melted into something more aggressive, and before he knew it his hands were on her hips, helping her move to straddle him. He didn't even realize her hands were in his hair until her nails raked his scalp.

Suddenly, one hand behind his head clenched hair and pulled sharply, pulling his head back as they separated, panting heavily.

There was a wicked steel in her eyes as she lifted herself up on her knees and looked directly down at his angled face. Her tone was cold, threatening. "If you ever try to leave me like that again, Garfield Mark Logan, I will chase you into the afterlife and make you wish for Hell."

Changeling stuck out his jaw, challenge twinkling in his eyes. "Aww, Rae, I missed you too."

It was in that moment of stillness, as he felt the warmth of Raven's hips under his palms and the tangle of her hands in his hair, Changeling saw a familiar glint in Raven's eyes… A spark of something he knew intimately…

Hunger.

It was a savage, carnal shimmer, the gleam of a mountain lion having found injured prey in the night. It made him feel like mouse caught in wild, outreaching talons…

It excited him.

He clutched at the base of her neck and pulled her in as he thrust his face forward, diving into another kiss. This time he was prepared, and he let his instincts- his own hunger and passion- fuel him. He savored her mouth and tongue, falling back to his most primal senses, and he explored Raven's body with greedy hands.

He let one hand remain firmly against her back, massaging her shoulder and pinning her to his chest, while his right hand flowed with the gentle curves of her body. She let out a small moan into his mouth as he clenched her thigh just above her knee, and he couldn't help but revel in the shiver of delight that ran though her body.

Without breaking off the kiss he kneaded the muscle of her leg, slowly working his way up. He smiled when he felt goose bumps on her porcelain skin, but just as he neared the edge of her uniform a small but forceful hand landed on his chest. The lips he'd been so thoroughly enjoying left his own, a small groan of disappointment escaping him.

Raven ran her delicate hands against his chest and pushed just enough that he was forced to lean back on his hands- giving her full access to his chest and shoulders...

He'd be damned if he didn't enjoy the attention.

Raven was observing the fabric of his uniform with odd concentration, a sort of gentle delicacy as her fingers danced across its texture over his form, as if counting each individual thread. Her sultry, breathless voice brought him out of relishing in the whispers of her touch.

"Your uniform…" Raven's breath fogged. "Can you feel it?" Raven's hands ran up his sides, settling on his pectorals. Changeling had to force his brain into processing the question before responding.

"No… No, nerves don't grow that far out."

"Good." Raven's eyes flashed black as she gripped the tight material and tore it apart, splitting his shirt down the middle from collar to waist. Garfield's green skin was dark in the moonlight, scars glistening in the shadows of his musculature.

Changeling chuckled lowly. "I could have saved you the trouble…"

"And deny me the pleasure of ripping it myself?" Raven's deadpan monotone was paired with an infuriatingly subtle and sultry smirk and signature peaked eyebrow.

Garfield just grinned toothily in turn.

In one quick motion he grabbed her arms, holding them tight to her torso, taking extreme satisfaction at the surprise etched on her face as he flipped her over. With a spin of his legs he had Raven flat on her back against the sea-mist moistened stone as he rested above her.

He dove into a kiss with renewed fervor, now in a vantage position, and with the thrill of dominance running hot through his veins. The feel of her warm body writhing against his, her legs rubbing fervently against his sides only helped to fuel his arousal. He resumed his eager exploration of her body, but soon enough found himself unsatisfied with the feel of the fabric against his hands.

He wanted more. He wanted it all. And he was in way too deep to stop now.

* * *

Her back was pinned against the smooth, cool rock, the night breeze chilling her exposed skin, and she was exhausted from the last four sleep-deprived days she'd spent in meditation and research since waking up… but all she could think about was the warmth of his body, the paths of his hands against her skin, and his lips locked to hers.

He tasted wild, fresh, and slightly like pine, as she played with the sharp tip of his large incisor. She shivered as his claws ran down the length of her thigh, felt like she was boiling from the ecstasy in her gut.

She moaned against his lips and twisted her fingers into his hair, nails scratching at his scalp. She felt his fingers press in harder, shakier than before- she'd have to keep that trick in mind for later incursions- and she squirmed beneath his body, relishing how their bodies rubbed together.

She didn't care about the claw marks on her skin, only why his hands still hadn't gone further, hadn't explored other areas, and why a warm, tingling feeling was spreading through her belly.

She didn't have long to think though, as he pulled away, his lips glistening as he watched her with a wry grin. She met his gaze and her eyes widened at what she saw...

Changeling's deep green eyes were wildly feral, a fire burning behind them that spoke of years of longing, of secret painful desires. She felt the warmth spreading once more, wanted nothing more than to let it flood through her.

She raised an eyebrow, her only expression of the impatience she'd never admit to.

Garfield's mischievous smile had never been so predatory… or so exciting.

His hands blurred in front of her. She gasped as she felt a single claw tore cleanly down the center of her uniform from the neckline to her navel, allowing the fabric to split apart and leave most of her chest exposed.

Cool air rushed into the gap, chilling the heated skin and raising goosebumps across her stomach. The fabric didn't burst completely open, it was simply released from the tension of complete closure…

While she wasn't truly "exposed" before him, she'd never felt more so in her life.

Changeling dipped his head to bring his mouth beside her ear, whispering breathily. "Now we're even."

She tightened her grip on the back of his head to hold him in place. "That was a magically reinforced Kevlar-spandex weave capable of stopping knives and small ammunition fire. It cost several thousands of dollars."

She clenched her jaw to suppress a gasp as he placed a wet kiss just below her ear, his breath dancing over it.

"It was in my way."

She found herself unable to respond as he followed that kiss with a trail of others, leading down the side of her neck to her collarbone...

She heard him whisper. "No bra?"

"Built into the suit. No lines."

He only growled in response, but she could have sworn there were traces of a purr...

Or maybe that was her…

She could feel his hand sliding over her taught, exposed stomach as his lips passed her collarbone, moving toward the center of her chest.

Hand and kisses met as his thumb graced the exposed flesh revealed by the split of her uniform. His thumb graced her breast, the first attention they'd received yet, and it felt like a live wire coursed down her spine.

Raven arched her back, and Changeling took the opportunity to slip a hand underneath the fabric, his thumb hooking the edge.

She felt him gently slide the fabric to the side, felt the chill of the night reach more of her breast as his warm breath ghosted over her curve…

The fabric caught briefly, then gave as a pink nub emerged into the moonlight.

Changleling's course thumb circled it once, twice, narrowing in until her eyes went wide as the rough texture or his hand sent sparks through her sensitive skin-

A sharp crack echoed across the Island.

Both Titans froze, the heat of the moment dispersed in an instant. For a moment, nothing happened….

Then they felt the ground shift beneath them.

Before either could react, the rock they'd been resting on- as well as a sizeable portion of the land beneath it- broke free from the island and pitched the amorous duo into the icy waters of the bay.

* * *

A/N: Mwahahahaha! That's all folks...

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Jk, there's one scene left before this chapter's over. This is just a commercial break so you can cool down while Raven and Garfield go swimming...

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I know, I'm evil.

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I'm surprisingly okay with that.

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Okay, we can keep going now:

* * *

The beach of Titan's Island was blissfully serene. The moon was bright, casting shimmering silver on the wave caps that only moments ago had swallowed a large slab of rock.

All was calm, at least, until two sopping superheroes drug themselves out of the dancing waves and onto the pockmarked land.

Raven and Changeling flopped ungracefully on the rocks, content to do nothing more than gasp deep breaths of cold air and avoid looking at each other.

Slowly, their breathing returned to normal, at which point the gentle lapping of the waves did nothing to disperse the awkward silence between them.

Eventually, Changeling laughed. "You know, if you wanted me to stop, you could have just said so. The cold shower was a little excessive."

Raven's monotone was back in form. "You ruined my suit."

Changeling's chuckle was appropriately sheepish. "Yeah, sorry about that… heat of the moment…."

"It's fine," she reassured him. "Nothing my reparation spell shouldn't be able to handle."

"I always wondered about that," Garfield's tone was surprisingly conversational, for two individuals in half-destroyed clothing. "I mean, I can just repair my suit when I shift, how do you think Nightwing does it? Does he sew?"

Raven snorted. "Starfire says he's got a stash of them three layers deep in his closet, worse than even his old Robin uniform."

Changeling's eyes glinted. "Oh, so if one or two were to go missing…"

"Don't even think about it," She warned. "He's probably got them catalogued."

Changeling barked laughter. "Yeah, totally. GPS-tracker, DNA-activation too..."

"At the least."

Changeling's chuckle slowly lulled into silence….

"Where is 'Wing, anyways?"

"Patrol. Since Slade resurfaced, Nightwing's making sure he didn't stick around to take another shot at one of us. He's probably out with Starfire and Ravager right now."

That shocked Changeling into sitting upright. "Crap, I totally forgot about Rose! Is she okay, is she-"

That was when Changeling saw the expression on Raven's face: the conflict and regret.

"I'm going to clean up," she announced, rising as she decidedly dodged the question. "You'll have to talk to Cyborg, he knows better than I do."

Raven made it halfway into a black portal when Changeling called out. "Wait, Rae, before you go…. You're not… upset, are you?"

She paused, not sure what he meant.

"I mean, like, I didn't do something wrong, did I? When the rock caved… did I-"

_Oh._

"No," Raven ceded, a blush rising on her cheeks as her near-exposure in the moonlight caused her to instinctively raise a hand over her chest. "You were… good. Very good."

Changeling's ears twitched, his expression unreadable. "So… that wasn't… it was an-"

"Accident, yes." She clarified, her tone slightly more rushed than normal. "I've been meditating for days, but I haven't started researching those wards."

She paused before confessing quietly, "I wasn't sure you'd still want to… after…"

"Rae," Changeling interrupted, something in his tone drawing her eyes to him. "I told you, I'm not mad. Thank you for saving me, I sorry you had to do that to bring me back, but you did, and it's over. We're good."

Raven nodded and turned back to the portal-

"Any idea when you might have those wards ready?" Changeling's voice was higher than usual, faster, with just enough desperation and fear to show he knew he was pushing his luck….

Raven just reflected, calculating the energies needed, the resources she'd need to collect, the books she'd have to find and read again…

Then she smirked as inspiration struck. "A week."

Changeling's ears drooped even as relief poured from his aura- relief which quickly turned to confusion. "What's in a week-"

But Raven was gone, Changeling stood alone on the beach.

He turned to face the waves as the image of Raven, leotard split down the middle as she looked up at him flashed in front of his eyes.

"One week," he whispered to himself before looking down. He felt the icy waves calling him. "I'm gonna need another cold shower."

* * *

A/N: Okay, yes, that's really the end of it... for now. Like I said, I have a lemon consultant, an epic BB+Cyborg scene, and Ravager's storyline to wrap up, so we're looking at two more chapters, at least.

I know, that doesn't seem like much, but I'm not going to drag this story into forever... As the saying goes, "you either end the story well, or you write long enough to see your story become plotless."

That is how that saying goes, right?

Anyway, Look up WordSPark37 and his story "Daydreams" if your appetite for BBxRae isn't sated (actually, do it anyway, cuz that story deserves some reviews, and cuz I Beta'd, please!), and don't forget to leave your review here!

Suggested topics include, but are not limited to:

Ranting at me for cutting the lemon off short

Begging for more citrus (which is coming, I promise)

Discussing the ethics of Changeling's conversation

Hating me for BB's "meat" story

Loving me for my unorthodox interpretation of character's backstories

Proposing marriage

And pointing out (again) that I accidentally ripped of LamontCranston's "Love in Shades of Green and Grey" with Changeling's "suspense" joke.

_To Mr. Cranston: I sincerely apologize for doing so! It was never my intention, I truly thought I was being witty and original, I completely forgot you'd done it first. You are still my hero, I hope you forgive me!_

Anyway, Leave a review, and go check out "Daydreams"!

Love you all, (any your record-shattering 46 reviews last chapter)

-TwistedPremise


	24. Freedom

A/N: Okay, I'll make this quick. I'm TwistedPremise, I'm currently working on the massive undertaking of concluding this story in a manner both appropriate to the story arc and satisfying to ardent BB/Rae fans such as myself, such that this story may end gracefully. I don't own anything related to the Teen Titans or their affiliated intellectual property, I just enjoy playing "what if" with my friends and reviewers here online.

Let the story continue!

-TwistedPremise

* * *

Thirty minutes later, a soaking wet Changeling entered the Titan's common room to find Cyborg wiping down the kitchen counter.

"'Bout time you showed up," Cyborg quipped, noticing Changeling's sodden state. "You go swimming, or Raven throw you in?"

"A little of both," Changeling admitted, collapsing heavily on a stool at the kitchen island. "First she threw me in, then I went flying, ran a couple laps, went swimming again-"

"Dude," Cyborg admonished. "You just woke up from eight days in a coma. You do not need to be-"

"I couldn't help it!" Changeling massaged his temples. "I needed to stretch. If I go too long without shifting I get tense… it's like an itch that won't go away until I do."

Cyborg shook his head as he turned towards the refrigerator. "You get it out of your system?"

"Yeah," Changeling's voice was tired. "I think so."

"Good," Cyborg thumped a bowl of salsa, a bag of chips, and two beers on the counter "'cuz the Jumpshots just started the third quarter."

Changeling grinned widely as he grabbed the chips and a bottle and bounded over to the couch in two leaps, followed shortly (and less bouncily) by Cyborg. Having long since incorporated a remote into his systems, Cyborg turned on the larger-than-life screen and set the dip in between them.

"So," Cyborg led casually. "Why'd Raven send you swimming this time?"

Changeling hoped desperately his mechanical friend was too distracted by the game to notice his spit-take and blush.

"Oh, uh, the usual, I guess. Got a little close to her, uh, personal pla- space! Her personal space. Yeah."

Cyborg seemed to buy it, at least. "Man, I'm gonna have to separate you two or something… Please tell me you didn't try and thank her with a kiss."

Changeling swallowed a tortilla chip whole and devolved into a coughing fit. "What?! No, no, nothing like that. Just… pushed the wrong buttons, you know?"

_Or all the right ones…_

Cyborg fist-pumped as one of the Jumpshot players pulled away for a breakaway layup. "So you two patch things up? She was pretty torn up when you were unconscious."

Cy's wording made Changeling picture another rip, also affiliated with Raven, splitting strained black fabric…

"Uh, yeah, yeah," Changeling stammered, taking a sip of beer to buy time and recover. "We're good."

"Okay then," Cyborg nodded, still not looking at Changeling.

The green shapeshifter sighed, happy to have avoided that particular conversation. He took a deep swig of beer as Cyborg continued.

"But next time you two get all touchy-feely, try not to break the Island, all right?"

* * *

In one motion, Changeling managed to spray beer clear across the room and dump the remainder of the bottle (which was still mostly full) on himself.

Cyborg's booming laugher only deepened Changeling's crimson face, a mixture of shock, frustration, and extreme embarrassment conflicting in his features.

"What… how… I mean, I didn't…"

"Oh, your face!"

"We didn't, I mean, I didn't-"

Cyborg just held up his hand to cut Changeling off. "Man, don't bother. When the Tower's seismic sensors went off, I knew something was up. When I saw you two coming out of the water, well, either you two got in one hell of a fight, or…."

Changeling just flopped back on the couch, defeated. "Cy man, please tell me you didn't see-"

"Relax, dude, I turned away as soon as I knew you were both okay. Rae's like a sister to me, I didn't want to see any more."

Changeling's hearing barely picked up Cyborg's addendum...

"After a cold bath like that, probably wasn't much to see anyway."

"Hey!"

Cyborg's mirthful cackling wasn't going away any time soon, so Changeling settled for taking his bottle to the kitchen and wetting paper towels to clean himself off.

There'd only been a few seconds of silence before Cyborg called out, still watching the game. "So you two are an item now, huh?"

Changeling just snorted. "What gave it away?"

Cyborg's response surprised him. "Raven's face… when she didn't think I was watching."

And just like that, the atmosphere of the room shifted.

The bright, energetic sounds of the game faded, neither Titan paying them any notice.

Changeling paused his cleaning to watch his friend. He couldn't see Cyborg's face, but his voice made it clear his gaze was distant.

"You should have seen it man. I can run on power cells and caffeine for a long time, but even I have to take bathroom breaks, go get food, fresh batteries, that kind of stuff. Over the four days she was up, that turns into 27 times I'd run out of the infirmary real quick."

Changeling was hanging on his friend's every word. "Every time I left- didn't matter what time it was or who knew I was going- I'd come back to find her sitting there, watching you. Couple of times she'd be whispering, once she was holding your hand, but every time she had this look on her face… I've never seen anything like it."

Cyborg shook his head, returning to the present. "She's into you, Green Bean. Don't know what voodoo you pulled, but she's fallen so hard I was checking her for head trauma."

Changeling grinned silently, his head bowed with the gravity of what he was hearing. Cyborg lapsed into silence, the shifting light from the screen glancing off his eyes and armor with equal effect.

"You take care of her, all right? She deserves that."

Changeling looked up to find Victor looking him dead in the eyes, softened steel in his remaining pupil begging Garfield to take care of a girl he had no real claim over, no legal ties to, but whom he considered his little sister.

For the moment, it didn't matter that Raven could send them both running with a glance.

This was a guy thing.

The need to know that your family was taken care of, was treated properly and with respect: especially daughters and sisters. It was why the suitors were so often interrogated in parlor rooms and front porches, while fathers cradled childhood snapshots and shotguns.

Any and all suitors needed to be vetted and approved-

And Cyborg was giving Changeling that blessing.

Changeling's voice was heavy with meaning, his throat thick with emotion and understanding.

"I will, Vic."

Cyborg nodded slowly, as though analyzing the depth and earnestness behind the simple words.

He turned back to the game, satisfied.

"Good, cuz I'll kick your ass if you make her cry."

Changeling grinned as he hopped over the couch. "Get in line, Cy. It starts with Raven, and if there's anything left by your turn, it'll only be because Star went easy on me."

* * *

The rest of the game was enjoyed in companionable silence and ridiculous- but no less necessary or meaningful- banter as the young men celebrated a come-from-behind win over the Metropolis Calvas.

Cyborg was washing the dip bowl when Changeling remembered the question he'd been saving.

"Hey Cy, what happened to Rose? I mean, I assume Jericho explained everything and you guys got her the antidote, right?... Cy?"

Cyborg had frozen in place, the water still running over the dish in his hands.

"Raven didn't tell you?"

"No, actually," Changeling's voice was wary. "She froze up… kinda like you. What Happened, man, is Jericho okay?"

Cyborg ran a hand instinctively over his head, ignoring the streak of water left behind. "Umm, it might be easier to show you."

Changeling turned to the TV as the screen switched from the post-game analysis to what appeared to be security footage. The angle was high up, likely one of Cyborg's surveillance drones, while the scene was one of the frustratingly common dark alleys in Jump City.

Changeling watched as a group of six young men, age ranging from sixteen to probably mid-twenties rushed into view, shoving two younger kids- probably twelve or thirteen- with them. The group circled around the two young boys as the audio kicked in.

"All right, kiddos, welcome to the big leagues" the leader- a greasy-looking twig of a man- sneered. "The East Side crew only takes one kid from your part of the hood, so if you want in, this is your chance."

The biggest guy, a meathead standing at least a head taller than anyone else and with more tattoos on his skull than hair, drew a switchblades from inside his jacket and dropped it on the ground.

"Rule's simple. One of you's getting cut tonight, both from the family and from the knife. When I say go, all you's gotta do is-"

"What the-"someone cut in-

And all hell broke loose.

Changeling's eyes were especially suited for tracking fast movement, but even he had a hard time following the blur of black, orange, and white as Ravager swept through the gang like wind.

Two men- the ones with their backs to the shadow- collapsed straightaway as a pair of rapid, heavy thuds suggested they'd wake up with concussions.

The ring leader went for the inside of his jacket, making him a target, so by the time he'd even gripped the undoubtedly illegal pistol concealed there he'd received a sharp rap between the eyes that knocked him instantly unconscious.

The strike put Ravager directly between two guys in their young twenties. Changeling caught one of them grinning, certain they had her trapped.

The poor guy had never been so wrong.

Rose's hard heel thrust broke his left knee, right before her leg sweep knocked the other on his back.

Ravager followed through with her momentum by bringing her heel around to the side of the first one's head- conveniently placed at waist level thanks to his shattered kneecap- and ended her spin by driving a boot up between the second one's legs.

Changeling and Cyborg both winced visibly.

Those two fell to the ground cradling clearly debilitating injuries, and Changeling faintly heard the sounds of knuckles cracking. The last gang member- the big guy who'd dropped the switchblade- pulled a pair of brass knuckles from his pocket, sliding them on.

"Lady, you picked the wrong gang."

Changeling noted that the man could pass for a decent approximation of Mammoth, and wondered if the former Hive member had any cousins…

The big guy swung for Ravager's head, a blow that would surely knock her unconscious, possibly even crack her skull open-

-Except that Ravager wasn't there anymore.

She'd bent backwards behind the blow, slipping around to the big man's back-

Her blows as she moved were too fast to track, but Changeling was fairly certain there were six of them... maybe eight...

-and the juggernaught of a man collapsed to one side, partially paralyzed.

* * *

"Woah." One of the young boys- whose voice was still high-pitched- stared at Ravager in the near-darkness.

The other went for the knife.

"Jericho!" Nightwing's voice called out, and Ravager froze, mid-swing-

-her bo-staff inches away from the young boy's neck.

Nighwing landed in the picture in a deep crouch as his hand snatched the knife away from the young boy's grasp. He grabbed both boys and shoved them towards the street.

"Get home, stay in school, don't talk to any of these idiots again," he warned them, his voice sharp and impatient. "I don't care what they tell you, your degree will serve you better than a gang."

They didn't need to be told twice... their teachers would later comment that they'd never seen anyone make progress so quickly.

For now, however, they were just content to run as fast as their legs could carry them.

Once they were gone, Nightwing whirled on Ravager. "What the Hell was that?! He was a kid, you could have killed him!"

Rose's familiar voice rang out as she straightened. "I'm sorry, it's instinctual. I was trained never to hesitate. He was going for the knife-"

"We've been over this, Ravager," Nightwing's voice was firm, but lost its coldness. "We don't work like Deathstroke. Disarm. Incapacitate. Detain. We do not put lives at risk. Especially not civilians. You were unnecessarily rough on them as it is- three of these guys need medical attention!"

Faint groaning at their feet underscored his point.

"I'm trying," Rose's voice was strained. "You don't get it. You were trained by-"

"I know training matters," Nightwing interrupted. "But if you're going to be part of this team, you need to control your training, not let it control you."

Ravager nodded, and the image froze.

* * *

Changeling's voice was so quiet Cyborg almost didn't register the question.

"When was this video taken?"

"Tonight, just before you came in."

Changeling paused, processing.

"So Rose is okay, and wants to join the Titans?"

The team mechanic nodded. "She's applied for the rehabilitation program."

Changeling nodded. The Titan Rehabilitation program started with Jinx, and had since seen the likes of Gizmo, See-more, and a few other minor villains they'd encountered over time. Applicants could receive a sentence of serving under the Titans on probation, and after a time could either apply to join full-time like Jinx, go solo vigilante like Kid Wykkyd, or drop the hero world entirely- like Gizmo.

Cyborg continued. "Of course, she'll face trial for her crimes- the ones we know of, at least, but Nightwing thinks we can make a case for extenuating circumstances, considering the whole raised-and-drugged-by-Slade thing. She's technically in our custody right now."

"And Jericho's in her head to keep her in check… until she can override her training?"

Cyborg sighed. "Not exactly."

The video zoomed in on Rose's mask. When the pixilation resolved, Changeling could see detail that wasn't immediately apparent before.

Detail like how the right lens- the one on the black side of her mask- was sewed over.

Cyborg explained as Changeling stood in silence. "There was a ricochet in the explosion. A ball bearing entered her eye just deep enough to completely destroy the pupil and optic nerve, but not touch her brain. She's blind in that eye now, and Jericho needs both eyes to get out."

"Can't Rae-"

"Raven was unconscious for four days after the explosion. By the time she woke up I'd already taken the bearing out and patched up what I could. The damage had already begun to heal, and there was no guarantee she could have regenerated an entire organ like that in the first place."

The resounding silence was thunderous.

Changeling's voice was hollow. "I did this."

"No, man, there's no way you could have-"

"I did this," he repeated. "I called Jericho, I asked him to come here, to vet Rose. The bomb was meant for me, I didn't block it-"

"It's not your fault."

Both Changeling and Cyborg turned to see Raven- in a new leotard and fresh from a shower- at the door to the common room.

"Rae, I-"

"I was the target." Raven asserted, her monotone weighted with iron. "I made you the victim by following you and Rose. I could have healed her, but I exhausted myself by saving you first. I never even checked on them, even knowing Jericho was there."

"Rae, that doesn't mean-"

"Exactly."

Cyborg and Changeling blinked at the abrupt 180.

Cyborg caught on first. "Oh, she got you there, man. It's the same logic. You just said it's not her fault, but you were using the same argument… so it's not yours, either. You're both blaming yourselves for something neither of you is responsible for."

Raven nodded. "Deathstroke put Rose in that warehouse- in Jump City- for the purpose of drawing you out, getting information, and eventually killing you to trigger the Bargain. He left her at the center of the blast radius: if anyone should have died that night it should have been her."

Changeling's eyes widened at the realization. He hadn't had time to think about it, but of all the cold, downright evil things Slade had done, this could easily be the most callous.

Raven's voice was hushed with emotion, the situation hitting a little too close to home. "He sent two androids in his place, but was willing to sacrifice his daughter."

Changeling looked up, meeting Raven's eyes to find the pain of empathy giving way to an equally deep conviction. The truth in her eyes and voice dissolved the guilt around him as she spoke.

"It's not your fault. He was willing to kill her, and you saved her life. And Jericho's."

The resolve in her voice was indomitable.

"And now I'm going to give them their bodies back."

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Jump City:**

Starfire hovered over a rooftop in downtown Jump, watching Ravager and Nightwing spar.

She'd witnessed Jericho and Nightwing sparring before: the seemingly fragile young blonde was surprisingly adept in hand-to-hand combat, easily among the best in the Titan's network.

She wondered which mind was in charge at this particular moment- Ravager and Jericho had gotten surprising adept and comfortable with switching back and forth over the past week.

Of course, Nightwing could tell the difference.

"I must be fighting Ravager," his calm voice teased as he trapped the young woman in an arm-bar. "Jericho knows better than to try that combo on me."

"That's because Dad never taught him _this_-"

A blur of motion, and Nightwing lay facedown on the gravel roof, one arm twisted behind him.

Rose flipped her hair out of her face, pressing against Nightwing's shoulder. "Perks of being the younger sibling."

Nightwing twisted, looking for an escape, but found none and begrudgingly tapped out. Ravager rolled away to let him rise.

Starfire noticed a shadow in the corner as it grew in the third dimension, opening to dispense Cyborg, Raven, and Changeling.

She did her best to reign her enthusiasm- she really did- lest Changeling still be weak from his incident, but she still didn't let go until she felt Nightwing's hand on her shoulder.

She released the blue-tinged shapeshifter quickly and backed up to give him room to breath.

"Changeling!" Nightwing greeted calmly but warmly with a fist-bump. "Glad to see you're up! I was starting to think you were faking it to get out of training again."

"You wish," Changeling taunted back, shaky breath steadying as he grinned. "I was giving you time to recover from the last time I kicked your butt."

Rose simply offered a wave- Jericho's instinctive greeting- as her eye glowed green.

Changeling's teasing tone instantly sobered.

"Hey, Jericho… Dude, I'm so sorry-"

"Don't be." The glow faded as Rose's confidence emerged. "We're both incredibly grateful for what you did: you freed the last Wilson from Slade's grip once and for all. As soon as I'm able, Jericho and I are going back up north to use this opportunity and work with his team."

Raven spoke for the first time since arriving on the rooftop.

"You may still chose to do so, but it doesn't have to be in one body."

Every head turned in either confusion or surprise.

"Raven," Nightwing ventured, "did you find a way to heal-"

"No," Raven conceded, "But it may not be necessary."

Raven turned to Changeling. "I followed you to the bakery that day when you met Jericho."

His widened eyes showed his clear surprise. "No way, I-"

"Made it very difficult, but not impossible." She interrupted as Nightwing smirked. _No doubt Changeling's getting a private lesson in counter-espionage soon. _"In any case, I wasn't able to hear your conversation or identify Jericho, only determine that there was a foreign presence or entity in play."

She turned then to Jericho. "When I wasn't able to determine whether you were ally or threat, I began to research how to magically separate a possessive entity from a host. I intended to use it on Changeling in case of emergency."

"And you found one?" Cyborg sounded surprised.

"I found several," Raven clarified, "but discarded them at the time because they lacked subtlety, and I was trying to remain secret."

"Oh, this is glorious!" Starfire exclaimed. "You can separate them, yes?"

Raven winced. "Possibly, but it's not without risk. I wasn't able to identify a spell meant to remove a possessor willing but unable to leave- most possessive entities have to be forced out. The spells available, then, focus more on force than method, and with force comes the potential for damage."

Rose's eyes glowed green. "What kind of damage?"

Raven sighed. "One option risks leaving Jericho unable to form his old body: stuck only able to jump between hosts, or invisible when outside a host. Since that would make him unable to make eye contact, he may then be unable to take any host at all."

The Titans shared a glance at the notion: nobody seemed eager to explore that option in the slightest.

"Another spell risks blending personality and physical traits: Jericho may become the one blind in one eye."

No one needed clarification as to why that might be unfavorable.

"There is one option, however, with perhaps the highest likelihood of success. It would take Jericho out of one host into another he's inhabited recently, ideally no more than two or three jumps ago. He could then return to his own form."

Cyborg followed Raven's thought process. "And you're just bringing this up now-"

"-Because this option requires Garfield," Raven completed for him. "He's the only one Jericho's mind has a recent enough connection with for this to work."

Nightwing seemed wary. "What's the risk?"

Raven sighed. "It forcibly removes Jericho from Rose's mind… the fact that he's willing to leave should help, but the process still strains a normal human mind- never mind a precognitive one like Ravager's. Even though her system is free from the drug, it may have left her mind unstable-"

"It could drive her insane," Nightwing reasoned.

Raven nodded.

Ravager's confident voice made her opinion perfectly clear. "Do it."

All eyes turned to Ravager as she winced, squinting her eye before reasserting. "No, Jericho, it's exactly risky enough."

Another wince, and her voice grew insistent, if frustrated. "You risked everything to save me, I can risk a little to give you your body back."

Nightwing whispered to Raven as Ravager winced again. "Are you certain this is the best option?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I've spent the past four days doing almost nothing but meditation and looking for better options. There are none."

"-Well maybe I'm not so keen on living the rest of my life with my big brother in my head!" Rose continued to argue. "And I don't think you are either. What, you want to go back to Kole and say 'sorry, I had a chance to come back as myself, but I chose not to'? What if I have to go to jail for a few years, are you going to come too?"

Ravager's agitation gave way to exhaustion. "I'm sorry, Jericho, I know that's low… but you don't understand..."

"...I've never had my brain to myself."

The Titan's glanced at each other, suddenly aware of how personal this was becoming.

Rose continued, eyes clenched shut. "Ever since I can remember, I've had someone in my head, telling me what to do. He toyed with my dreams, put a speaker in my head so I'd always have to hear him… I could never get away from his voice, and if I disobeyed, there'd be shocks…."

Raven noticed that Nightwing's hands clenched trembled in rage until Starfire discretely took one hand in hers.

But Ravager wasn't done. "Then the drugs… Have you ever done something, and not known why you did it? Ever tried stopping yourself from doing something you knew was wrong, but you did it anyway?"

Starfire almost responded, but caught the slight shake of Nightwing's head. Rhetorical questions were still hit-or-miss for her.

"Now imagine that feeling with a sniper rifle in your hands. Imagine every part of you is screaming to push the gun away, to call out to the man in the crosshairs and tell him to run… but all you can do is scream inside as you watch yourself pull the trigger…"

Ravager's raw, pained voice settled, and Raven resolved never to hold back against Slade Wilson again. Robot or human.

It was so quiet on the rooftop that Changeling swore he could hear conversations from the street 30 stories below.

"I've never been free of him before," Rose whispered, "not even in my own head. And then you come in, Jericho, and you're everything I've ever wanted to be… Free of him and doing what's right with people who care about you…"

Rose's voice was desperate. "…and you set me free! For the first time I can remember, I said 'no,' and it actually worked! When Slade told us to kill him... I just kept waiting to feel the sword move, to kill the first person I'd actually gotten to know in years… but it didn't happen! For the first time, I was free…"

Ravager's breathing was dangerously close to sobbing, her head hung low. "But I wasn't free, not really. I just traded one mind-controlling family member for another. And you're great, Jericho, you really are… but it doesn't matter how freely you let me switch out, or how deep in the back of my mind you hide, because I _know_ at any moment I could end up watching as my hands follow someone else's instructions…"

Of all the Titans, Cyborg probably understood the sensation the best. He'd been hacked before- by Gizmo, no less- and the nightmare of being completely helpless with an in-house view as someone else worked you like a puppet?

He wouldn't wish that on his worst enemy... though after hearing this, he'd make an exception for Slade.

Ravager's voice dropped to a whisper. "I just want to be _me._ Just me. I want to make my own decisions, for my own reasons, to know that I'm not someone else's puppet."

Everyone, not just the empath, felt the desperation in her plea:

"Please, Joseph… Let me do this."

* * *

Ravager stood in silence for what seemed like days, but was likely only seconds, before she raised her head, eye glowing green.

She looked straight at Raven and nodded once.

It was all the permission Raven needed.

Her eyes glowed black as she intoned the words of power: Separum restalor paritheyn nor, restitium mentenvelox indivela Qoar!"

* * *

Changeling felt a strange but familiar chill in the back of his mind and the front of his eyes as the world went black.

A familiar voice called to him from the recesses of his mind. _Hey Changeling, sorry if I don't stay long. I'm dying to stretch my legs again._

He grinned- at least, it felt like he did. "I don't blame you. You've earned it Jer, thanks again."

_Glad to help. Just a head's up, though, Kole wants to talk to you about borrowing members from other people's teams like that... _

"Oh crap. I'm going to be giving G'nark Brontosaurus rides for a month, aren't I?"

_If you're lucky. _

Changeling's silent laughter faded as the world returned to focus.

He wasn't sure which of them asked the question:

_She's going to be okay, right?_

* * *

For a moment, everyone stood still as the black film over Rose's eye dispersed.

She fell to her knees, head hung, face obscured by white-blonde hair.

And then Rose started laughing.

"HA! HAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHA! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

It wasn't a comforting laughter…

This laugh was wild, reckless. It was raw, filled with emotions too extreme to make any sense together, all somehow fueling this maniacal, gleeful cackling….

The Titans glanced at each other nervously, no one sure what to do-

And then Ravager struck.

* * *

Raven did not have the fastest reflexes of the Titans.

Her spells required concentration, focus, and often advance preparation, so she consistently found herself at a disadvantage when facing quick-strike opponents.

Which was how she didn't realize what was happening until it was too late.

* * *

Raven was uncomfortable with hugs in general, but a bear hug-with Ravager wrapped around around both her and Changeling at once, effectively pinning them together?

It was beyond uncomfortable.

She put up with it, however, when she felt the gentle tremors wracking Ravager's body… felt the gratitude pouring from her in deep, measureless waves.

"Thank you." Rose whispered. "Thank you both... so much."

Raven stood there, arms literally pinned at her sides, and struggled to maintain composure.

It didn't help to see Jericho standing behind his sister, signing his thanks, as well.

Ravager finally broke off, stepping back to give them their space.

Raven noted Nightwing holstering his taser as she did so.

Time for her signature exit.

"If you'll excuse me," Raven would forever blame the way her monotone cracked in that moment to allergies. "I need to meditate-"

Her gaze shifted over to Changeling as the corner of her mouth lifted-

"-and do some research."

She phased into the shadow at her feet before anyone could call out-

-or question what exactly she needed to research.

* * *

There was something in that voice, that almost imperceptible shift of the classic monotone (plus or minus a few cracks) that sent Changeling's blood running hot.

Then he remembered what exactly Raven had promised to research, and the timeline she'd given for completing it.

"Hey Cyborg, is there something special about next Friday?"

Cyborg was clearly confused by the randomness of the question, but found an answer nonetheless. "Not really, not unless you count the Mayor's Annual City Ball."

Changeling's gaze shifted to Nightwing. "You and Star have that covered, right?"

Starfire giggled, and Changeling just _knew _his "innocent" friend had something to do with the sinking feeling in his gut…

"Actually Changeling, Star mentioned earlier today that if you were awake by then it'd be the perfect chance to show the public that you and Raven are back in good health. We could use the good press, and it's a major fundraiser for several good causes...

_Oh shi-_

"...We're all going this time."

Changeling remembered the last ball he'd attended... three years ago.

A lot of old people in formal attire with nothing much to say, all somehow convinced they were important. Bright camera flashes that hurt his eyes, then-Robin chastising him for pigging out at the buffet- the meager part of it reserved for vegetarians, anyway.

He remembered a dance floor without a single good beat to dance to, boring speeches, and spending hours getting his "tuxedo" to look right.

And then he remembered that "black tie" meant dresses… which was Raven's principal excuse for not attending.

But if she has to attend…

_Raven in a dress, _he realized, _is a very dangerous thing. _

"You'll have to excuse me for a bit," Changeling shifted into a Royal Tern- a more streamlined relation to a gull- and took off toward the bay, ignoring Nightwing's protestations.

_I'm going to need a lot of cold showers._

* * *

A/N: Okay, so I've pretty much given everything away, now... Ch. 25 (and possibly 26) will be the week up to and the Ball itself, with a forecast calling for a lemon towards the end... In the process, we'll cover what I consider to be a realistic way Raven might shut her powers down long enough to do something so emotional, (and no, it's not as easy as an "off switch," that would ruin her primary struggle as a character, fanfic writers). We'll also see Changeling actually asking Raven out, possibly some Rae + Cyborg conversation, possibly some Raven vs Batman dialogue, and definitely banter and fluff between our favorite Titans.

As always, I'm incredibly open to reviews, feedback, and suggestions, so speak now or forever hold your peace!

-TwistedPremise


	25. Desperate Research and Helldust

Hello my beautiful, wonderful, patient and forgiving readers...

I know I promised to finish this story before the summer began... unfortunately I was unable to keep that promise.

It's because this last chapter is turning out so dang long... It's still three chapter's worth of material to cover, and no time to write! But I promise you, FF and BB/Rae fans, I am not dead, and I will see this story to completion... eventually.

Now, obligatory disclaimer: I'm TwistedPremise, and I don't own anything even remotely related to the Teen Titans or their intellectual property. I also don't make any money off this activity.

* * *

The next week seemed to drag on forever for Changeling.

Nightwing's "physical recovery" program- designed to bring a Titan who's body had atrophied while injured back to ideal levels of physical form and combat proficiency- kept him in the gym nearly half the day, every day, in addition to his normal individual and team-based training. It seemed like all he did all day every day was work out.

In itself, that wouldn't have been so difficult. He enjoyed training… when he was in shape and it mostly consisted of maintaining his condition. This wasn't that. Apparently, whatever afterlife forces that had seen fit to restore his body hadn't protected it from waning during his week-long recovery, and it was going to take several weeks of intensive workouts to restore the muscle mass and conditioning he'd lost.

His nights were similarly busy. He took on more patrols- his "thank you" to the rest of the team for covering his shifts during his time working on the movie script and while in the coma, which left him out of the tower and exhausted.

He was also responsible for writing a mission log for the events of the past month, a chore that Nightwing normally handled for team missions but now fell to him because he was the only Titan with all the information. There was just one problem:

Changeling hated writing mission reports… hated them with a passion. Normally he'd just write a bad one and let Nightwing fill in the gaps, but the team leader was being particularly stubborn about this one.

"No," Nightwing didn't even look up the third time Changeling found him in his office.

"You didn't even look at it this time!" Changeling complained, not caring that his voice was embarrassingly whiny.

"Is it more than five pages?"

"Yes."

"Increasing the font size doesn't count."

Changeling just grunted, slumped his shoulders and turned on his heel, drudging out the door.

_Anal-retentive busybody, _he whined internally. _It's not like anyone but the Titans could read it, and we all know what happened. _

_Well, mostly. _He amended.

Changeling would never admit it, but the problem with this report in particular was that he kept getting distracted when writing it… distracted by the stuff he _wasn't _putting in… the parts about Raven, and the Beast, and _Raven and the Beast…_

Changeling shook his head as if to dislodge the line of thought through force.

_Not going there, not going there, not going there…._

Changeling wouldn't admit it, but this week had felt painfully long for another reason… He hadn't seen Raven since the rooftop with Jericho and Ravager.

He'd have blamed her for avoiding him, actually, but he'd been so busy recently it was hard to tell whether she was actually in her room more often or whether he was just missing her.

Actually, there was no question he was _missing her_, but that was beside the point.

Raven had been particularly scarce of late, in his estimation, and he wasn't sure whether that was good or bad. On one hand, he hoped it was because she was preoccupied with other things… things which would pay off for them both in the near future. One the other hand, he _really _wanted to see her.

Part of him just wanted some validation that she hadn't changed her mind… he was still coming to grips with the idea that they were actually _dating _(a weird, not-sure-what-kind-of-dating-this-is dating, but a relationship nonetheless).

Part of him wanted to know how her research was going… for obvious reasons.

But mostly… he just wanted to be with her.

Like, chilling-on-the-couch, not-doing-much-of-anything-while-she-read-books-in-the-common-room with her, or entertaining-Starfire-with-cute-puppy-forms-while-she-sipped-tea-and-tried-not-to-smile with her.

Heck, right now he'd settle for begging her to help him with his mission report.

He paused as he reached her door in the hall, hopelessly wishing it would open and reveal her standing there, giving him an excuse to follow her to the kitchen for second breakfast (which was totally a thing, Mary and Pippin said so), but alas it did not.

And he knew from experience the past five days that knocking wouldn't change that. The only time Raven emerged was for training, after which she'd grab a quick snack and disappear back into her room, or to Jump University's library (which had long ago agreed to borrow ancient tomes from museums or other schools for Raven's perusal).

Sighing, Garfield turned and made his way to his own room, resolved to bang his head on the keyboard and hope that the keys ended up producing a passable mission report.

_At least that should keep me from thinking about her…._

* * *

Nightwing just shook his head, chuckling as Changeling exited the door. _Ten bucks says he comes back with one word on each page and says it's "spacing." _

He didn't even bother looking up as the door hissed open. "Changeling, I told you, if you didn't want to write a full report, you shouldn't have pulled a secret month-long mission solo."

"I'll take that into consideration next time."

Nightwing's head popped up to find Raven standing in front of him, a slight smirk quickly resolving into her passive mask.

Part of him felt chagrinned for guessing his guest wrong. _Though, given that I haven't seen Raven out of her room except for patrol or training, literally anyone else was more likely. _"Raven, good to see you out and about. What can I do for you?"

Raven's good humor visibly faded… that is to say, her stoic expression hardened.

"What is Grief Protocol?"

Nightwing's mask shifted with his raised eyebrows. _Oh-oh…_

Raven must have sensed his apprehension. "I read the mission reports. Cyborg's mentioned it but didn't explain what it was, just the sealed file number… which apparently doesn't exist in the Titan's records-"

_That's because it's in my personal, secured hard drive locked with my rotating passwords. Even Cyborg can't identify or access it without my directions._

"-And Starfire's report mentioned specifically that when you arrived to the warehouse your first priority was to get close to me." Raven's eyes narrowed on her leader. "Batman had you prepared for if I went rogue. What is Grief Protocol?"

Nightwing sighed and reached for his belt. "These."

Raven looked incredulous. "Handcuffs?"

Nightwing nodded, unable to look her in the eye. "In the event that you lose control of your powers, are coopted by a hostile entity, or otherwise endanger civilians, I'm supposed to knock you out and/or put these on you." He clicked them open to show her the silver lining on the interior of the cuffs.

"Pure iron shell means you can't affect them with magic, carbon fiber interior means you can't just break them off."

"But how would that-"

"Supercapacitor battery inside emits an initial shock to knock you unconscious or distrupt your focus."

Raven fell silent, and Nightwing's whisper betrayed his shame at what he held in his hand.

"Subsequent pulses and a constant low-voltage current prevent the subject from focusing or resisting arrest until they can be permanently detained." Nightwing continued, as though reading from a manual… a manual he was ashamed to have memorized.

Nightwing finally looked up at Raven, fearful for what he expected to see. "You probably read that I ordered Cyborg to prep the safe room."

Raven's far-off gaze was unreadable.

"Raven you have to understand, if I had known what you were actually doing, I'd have never-"

Raven seemed to snap out of her daze, but not to glare at her leader. Instead, she pursed her lips, frustrated, but clearly not at Nightwing. "You did the right thing."

Nightwing was confused. "I- I thought you'd be more upset about this…"

Raven waved her hand dismissively. "It's a taser and mild electrical stimulation to prevent mass genocide. I'm not worried about it."

Nightwing couldn't help but notice the way Raven's eyes were dancing across the floorboards, like her mind was racing. _She's frustrated, _he realized. _She came here looking for something, and this wasn't it. _"Raven, what's going on? Do you need help with something?"

That seemed to snap her out of her thoughts. For the first time since entering the room, Raven's tense façade broke. "No," she pulled a chair back and sat, massaging her temples. "No, just…. curious."

_Yeah, and Harley Quinn makes a great therapist, _Nightwing resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

Raven's next question surprised him. "What if the Safe Room were destroyed, or I broke free?"

Nightwing gulped, getting some sense of where this conversation was really coming from. "Raven, if you're worried about going rogue, I know you'd never-"

"How would you stop me?" Raven insisted, still not looking at him behind her hands, still kneading her furrowed brow. "If you wanted to stop my powers without permanently harming me for an extended period of time, how would you do it?"

There was something in her tone… not fear, not desperation, but still like desperately trying to solve a riddle of personal interest…

"Raven, where is this coming from?"

Raven tensed, and the extra chair next to her cracked in half.

"Okay, okay…." Nightwing placated. _I don't know why this is so important now, of all times, but she's obviously rattled… _"I don't expect that to ever be necessary, Raven, I don't have anything but short-term solutions for any of the Titans- I can't let myself start distrusting the team like that…"

_Not like him, _he amended.

"…but if you really want to have that conversation, I can put in touch with someone who does."

Raven looked up, and Nightwing saw a spark of hope deep in her eyes.

"Tell me."

* * *

It was an exceptionally dark night in an exceptionally dark city. Raven suppressed a shiver as the breeze blew across the gravel rooftop, some fifty floors above the twinkling street. She stood stoic, resisting the urge to pull her cloak tighter around her.

She remembered this city. She remembered hiding in its shadows, hunting for scraps and sleeping behind its dumpsters. She remembered fleeing from every stray sound, even the rats scurrying in the trash. She remembered the feeling she could never wash off, the pungent odor of the filth and grime that pervaded its aura…

And she wasn't just referring to the state of its alleys and parks, either.

The grime had settled into its people, then. The entire city reeked of fear, of madness, of depression. It was largely a city without hope, then, and that's what had drawn her to it.

_If there's anywhere too far gone for me to corrupt further, _she'd reasoned, _it's Gotham. _

She remembered leaving, swearing to herself that she'd never return… but she was desperate.

Five days and nights of research had turned up nothing. Every book, every memory, every spell…. Nobody knew how to block outbursts of demonic magic. Sure, Iron was immune to her spells, and the occasional villain might have been able to block her conscious spellcasting abilities (Mumbo came to mind), but there was nothing- no material, no spell, no rune she could find which could block her from releasing subconscious bursts of energy.

She remembered many such outbursts of energy last time she was here… the fear and desperation rippling out when a baker had found her rummaging through his dumpster before she could teleport away…

She remembered the eyes that watched her back then. The aura that seemed to know exactly where she was, at all times, no matter what. While he never revealed himself, she always knew when his glare was on her, even though he never showed himself.

She felt that feeling again now, and straightened. _I am not that girl I used to be, _she reminded herself. _He is an ally, and I have every right to be here. _

She kept her eyes forward, resolved to wait, standing in the shaft of moonlight until he finished his appraisal.

It didn't take long.

"Raven," a deeply-graveled voice acknowledged from somewhere behind her and to the right.

"Batman," she returned.

"Nightwing says you have questions."

_So much for pleasantries, _Raven noted, aware of the irony. _So that's how everyone feels when talking to me. _

She nodded, confirming for the hundredth time that there were no towers nearby with vantage on their meeting. _I don't much care for this conversation becoming public knowledge. _

"What's your contingency plan for me?"

There was a pause…

"What makes you think I have such a plan?"

_There it is, _Raven knew in that moment that the answer was here, if only she could get to it.

"Nightwing has a plan to subdue every member of our team," she observed, remarking without ascribing the idea any positive or negative value. "He calls mine 'grief protocol,' likely because the most plausible reason he'd have to use it is if I suffered some form of tragedy and sought revenge on the villain."

She let her reflection hang in the air, the clinical reflection belying the sensitive nature of the topic.

"I know he has them for the rest of the team, has since we started working together. He built them into the Red-X suit."

"Then perhaps you should ask him for such a contingency plan. I have more pressing concerns-"

"I don't think you do."

The boldness of her assertion startled even her, but she maintained her impassive posture as she felt his aura shift behind her.

"I have a city to tend to."

"I'm well aware of your night job," Raven called out. "I also know that you took time away from it to keep an eye on a young girl who just wanted to hide in your city's shadows after she was turned away by the League."

The silence was thick, cold as the Dark Knight processed her acknowledgement… and the unspoken accusations that came with it.

"I think you were doing your research," Raven continued, "even then. You were watching me, looking for signs that I was dangerous, looking at ways to stop me if I ever became a threat."

She let her clinical, disinterested tone harden. "I want to know what you found."

His retort was quick this time. "And why would I tell you, if such a technique did exist? Why would I compromise a potentially crisis-averting tactic by revealing it, thus enabling you to undermine or avoid it?"

_A fair question, _Raven acknowledged. In truth, she wasn't certain she could answer it satisfactorily enough for the League's most cautious and secretive member. _But I have to try. _

She turned to face the statue of a man, spreading her arms to show herself unarmed- an admittedly symbolic and meaningless gesture.

"Because you owe me, you and all the League. Not just for when I first arrived on Earth, but for outsmarting the man who had you chasing his string for months."

Batman was about to retort when she continued.

"Because no one knows me better than I know myself, and if I know your plan now I can help you tailor it to guarantee success should it become necessary."

She caught his surprise spike before being suppressed, and she knew her willingness to help him had the desired effect.

"And because nearly two weeks ago I proved that it will **never** be necessary."

That was it… that was everything she had to work with… and Raven could only hope it would be enough…

* * *

The Dark Knight was not so easily moved.

"If you have a debt with the League, take it up with Zatanna and Superman. I'm a part-timer, Zatanna was the advisor to the league for your case, and it was Superman's villain who put you in the crosshairs."

And thus, one argument died.

"The advantage of surprise is more valuable than any advice you are likely to give me-"

-that's two down-

"-and all you proved in Jump is that while you didn't take any casualties of you own free will. You could always be compromised, in which case a contingency may be necessary."

And that's three.

Raven felt despair sink in as she realized she'd leave empty-handed.

"However," Batman continued, "Nightwing vouched for you, and I take his recommendation very seriously. He made it clear that he trusts you, and that this is of particular importance."

Raven's eyes grew wide, and she tamped down on hope lest she risk damaging something in front of the Caped Crusader and losing any chance she had left. _Could he really…_

"I don't like meta's in my city, I don't like revealing contingencies, and I don't like unanswered questions," Batman growled. "So tell me why you need this information and go back to Jump so I can get back to my patrol, and if I'm satisfied with your answer I'll send you my file on how to contain demonic magic."

Raven was so shocked with his acquiescence that she almost missed the question she was supposed to answer. _Let's see how little I can give away here…_

"It's personal."

"Not good enough."

Raven sighed. _He really didn't leave any options here, did he? _

_Of course he didn't_, she mocked herself. _He's Batman._

"I'm looking for a way to temporarily prevent the expression of my energies," she explained. "Over time, I've learned to express subtle things, but I've reached an impasse of sorts…"

The blank stare of white lenses in a black cowl revealed no sympathy to her struggle.

"The incident with Deathstroke showed me that I'm still emotionally vulnerable, able to be manipulated. Obviously, that's dangerous, but so is any exploring of my emotions without safeguards. I need a way to prevent outlashes or stop them from destroying anything while I experience more… intense… emotions."

Raven fought back a blush as she tried not to think of exactly what type of "intense emotions" she was preparing for.

"You should have led with that."

It was only because Raven had a lifetime of experience expressing herself in shades of monotone that she picked up the subtle grin in the dark man's voice.

"So you do have a contingency" she confirmed.

"Of course," he dismissed. "An individual with your capabilities… I've found the greater the power, the greater the Achilles heel. Even Superman has Kryptonite."

"Besides a taser?" Raven quipped.

"That was a first draft," Batman confirmed, "a stopgap while I researched more permanent arrangement. Should you ever go rogue, the League needs a reliable and humane way to stop you and hold you for questioning."

"And you found one that doesn't involve a panic room?" Raven let some incredulity creep into her tone.

"Panic rooms are unreliable and inconvenient," the Dark Knight replied. "Even Arkham isn't inescapable, I prefer a more flexible solution."

"So what is it?"

The Batman's glare lowered. "Not yet. You've answered my question, now get back to Jump. Once you get there, prove it by loading a file onto the Titan's network… the training video from one month and 13 days ago. For some reason, Nightwing has that file stored somewhere even I can't reach it, I want to know why."

Raven blinked at the sudden change in the conversation. _Does he monitor all our video? Does he read mission reports for all the Titans? Does Nightwing know? _

The Dark Knight seemed to read her mind. "I only monitor Nightwing's development and information critical to League operations and security. And he suspects, I'm sure, or he wouldn't have hidden the video."

Raven tried to remember what video might be in question… and then it came back _very _clearly. _Hard to forget shirtless Garfield sparring with Nightwing…_

Raven actually smirked. "I can't imagine why Nightwing would want to secure footage of Garfield kicking his ass in unarmed combat."

Raven actually _felt_ Batman's surprise (though to his credit, it was entirely imperceptible on the exterior).

"That, I _have _to see." Batman turned and strode for the edge of the roof.

Raven couldn't help but grin as she pictured Nightwing's response to that video getting out… and then she sobered as a though occurred to her.

"What if I can't get the video?"

Batman crouched on the parapet, looking over his shoulder at her.

"Then you'll have to explain to Mr. Logan why exactly you'll be restricting your make-out sessions to the panic room."

Then he leapt from the ledge, and Raven heard the rustling of fabric as his cape stiffened and carried him into a glide over the streets of Gotham.

Raven, for her part, could only hope her bright blush faded by the time she made it to Jump City.

* * *

Cyborg had a certain routine to his mornings.

Barring an emergency boot-up, he liked to warm up (literally, his systems physically cooled to preserve battery life while asleep) with a diagnostic, a sweep of the Tower's systems to ensure full functionality, and maybe a review of his emails before venturing to the kitchen for breakfast.

Suffice it to say, waking up to see Raven standing in front of his recharging station was not part of that routine.

"GAGH!"

"Good morning to you too, Cyborg."

"Geez, Rae, sorry, but you know that's like, the second-most common trope in horror movies, right? Waking up to find somebody staring at you?"

"What's the first?"

"Huh?"

"What's the most common trope?"

"Oh, right. It's a chick investigating mysterious noises in her underwear."

Raven scoffed. "Typical."

Cyborg shook his head to dislodge the early-morning grogginess. "Okay yeah, so, aside from trying to give me a heart attack, why are you waiting for me to wake up, again?"

"Do you still keep a hard copy of all the training footage you take?"

Cyborg groaned, _it's too early for this_. "Yeah, all backed up to my off-line drive and the Titan's network, why?"

"Nightwing's got a file hidden I need."

_That _woke Cyborg up. "Wait, 'Wing's got a video he doesn't want available to the network? You know which one?"

Raven handed him a slip of paper with a date and time scrawled on it. "Remember the day Changeling sprayed Starfire with ink? It's the sparring session between Nightwing and Changeling."

Cyborg's flawless memory ensured he knew exactly the incident Raven was referring to.

"Of _course_ 'Wing would pull that one off the server," Cyborg mused. "Oh, I am so re-uploading that one, and I'll lock it so he can't pull it anytime soon…"

Raven merely nodded, satisfied that her work here was complete.

Cyborg mentally pulled up the file and resubmitted it to the Titan's file servers, watching the progress bar race to 100%...

"So, Rae," Cyborg's tone smoothed over, a false attempt at subtlty. "What's the big deal with this video to you?"

He glanced away from the progress bar to see that he was too late. Raven was gone.

* * *

Raven reappeared in her room just in time to hear her communicator chirp. She flipped it open to a message from an unknown source.

_Instructions and materials are on their way. ETA 5 minutes. _

Four minutes later, Nightwing pinged her communicator.

"Morning, Raven. Radar's picking up a bogey incoming, it's the Batwing's ID signature. I take it this is for you?"

Raven nodded. "I'll meet it on the roof."

The pitch-black jet was just in sight when Nightwing came out the stairwell and joined her.

He shrugged when she looked at him sideways. "Never know whether he's on board or not."

Raven nodded and watched the jet approach.

"What did you offer him?"

If Nightwing was surprised by her question, he didn't know it.

He didn't answer, either.

"What did he ask you for, Dick?"

Nightwing sighed. "Bludhaven's organized crime has started spilling over to Gotham. He wants me to take Star and try and beat it back… three weeks, six tops."

"And why Starfire?"

"Because he wanted me to do it solo, I refused, so he agreed to only one person- to watch my back."

Raven felt a pang of regret. "You didn't need to-"

"I know him, Raven," Nightwing shook his head. "He doesn't trust anyone, he was never going to give you what you needed without something in return."

_And here I thought I was doing the bargaining on my own, _Raven mused. _He played me…_

"Besides," Nightwing continued. "I should really be thanking you. Star will be thrilled when I tell her we'll be going on a six-week date to a new city, living undercover as newlyweds…"

"She'll hug you to death," Raven quipped. "And once you explain it's a mission, you'll be lucky if it's accidental."

The Batwing reached them then, hovering over the landing pad.

A small package dropped from a hatch at the base of the plane, and the jet accelerated again, banking to return to Gotham.

Raven debated taking the package to the privacy of her room, but curiosity got the better of her. She tore the nondescript packaging tape with one fingernail, folding back the lids to reveal…

"Raven, why is Batman sending you a bag of sand and a bar of iron?"

There was a label attached to the bag, and Raven pulled it up to eye-level to read the tiny font.

As soon as she did, the bag fell to the roof, glowing black.

_It can't be…. _Raven gasped. _I thought there wasn't any left in this dimension… _

It shouldn't have been possible, but Raven couldn't deny what she saw, what she _felt…_

In her shock, Raven could feel a bolt of uncontrolled energy being released…

But the only thing glowing black was the sand in front of her…

_It is… _she realized. _The ashes of a man possessed by a demon and burned alive…_

_Helldust._

* * *

A/N: And that's it for now... Mwahahaha. I know, not my most compelling chapter, but hopefully you guys enjoyed it! It was fun to write "omniscient Batman" squaring off with "self-aware Raven" though I think that's the last of my greater Justice League cameos.

As usual, I live for reviews, absolutely can't get enough of them, so do your worst! If you enjoy my writing, please go check out my two other TT stories on my page and let me know what you think about those, as well!

Happy Fanfic'ing

-TwistedPremise


	26. Family Memories

Woohoo! 100,000 words! I just officially entered the rarefied air of the truly insane! And it only took me a little over a year to do it!

And yeah, it's probably not actually 100,000 words of story yet, considering some of my early author's notes and whatnot were pretty long, but hey, it's something, right?

Anyway, cue disclaimer: I don't own anything related to TT, and I actually borrowed a pretty critical part of this chapter from another story (I credited this one at the end, no infringement intended), so it's all intended for fun and fandom here... -TwistedPremise

* * *

Raven had to give Nightwing credit: he was quick on the uptake.

"Helldust…" the team leader whispered as the bag hit the roof of Titan's Tower.

Raven just nodded, reeling.

"Of _course_ he's got a stash of Helldust," Nightwing's voice grew pinched as he sought to reign in fury. "It's not enough to spy on us, or insist on his damn _contingencies_, he trusts us so little that he keeps a secret stash of **_helldust_** in that damn-"

"I asked for this."

Raven's voice was so soft that Nightwing almost didn't register her comment.

Not that it reigned in his anger any.

"No, Raven, you didn't do anything to deserve-"

Raven's upturned hand cut him off.

"No, I mean… I asked him to send it here," she corrected, her voice distant. "Though I didn't realize he'd have Helldust, specifically."

"Raven," Nightwing's voice was focused, intense but confused. "What is going on? When you came to me, I thought this was some kind of safety measure, that maybe you were afraid of someone forcing you to do something dangerous and wanted reassurance… I didn't think you were looking for something this dangerous. What is going on?"

"…."

"Raven?"

It was only then that Nightwing realized Raven wasn't paying attention and he took a closer look at her posture.

At first, nothing would appear amiss from Raven's normal stoic stance, but this was likely due to her highly concealing cloak. Raven stood, shrouded and hooded, exactly as she might when disinterested in whatever conversation was happening around her.

The truth was (as it so often hid) in her eyes.

Raven's gaze rested on the small plastic bag, her eyes clouded and distant… except for her noticeably dilated pupils…

That's when Nightwing noticed that the bag had split upon hitting the roof, and a small amount of ash spilled out onto the rooftop, glowing black…

_Oh, Crap, _Nightwing leapt into action.

Scooping the ash back into the bag and sealing it, Nightwing threw it and the iron bar into the box they came from and kicked it toward the far side of the roof- away from Raven. Turning and instantly throwing himself into a full sprint, Nightwing half-tackled, half-scooped-up Raven and bolted through the door to the stairwell, slamming the door behind them.

The door slamming seemed to snap Raven from her stupor.

Immediately, Raven's eyes returned to normal and she kicked her way free of Nightwing's grip.

Unfortunately, the energy Raven had expected to lower her gently to the steps didn't materialize, and it was only Nightwing's quick reflexes that stopped her from falling down the stairs.

Shaking her head, Raven gripped the handrail and Nightwing gently released her wrist.

"What happened?" Raven croaked, as though having just woken up.

"The bag split," Nightwing replied, voice terse. "You went into a haze."

Raven took a deep breathe, bringing her left hand up to rub her temple, bracing for the inevitable question.

"Raven, why did Batman just send you your own personal Kryptonite-slash-heroin?"

* * *

That was how Raven found herself giving her team leader the same response she'd tried to use on his former mentor… and to similar- if more discrete- results.

"You're trying to explore expressing more extreme emotions," he paraphrased, dry incredulity at its finest.

Raven merely nodded.

"And you need a rare, highly addictive substance that puts you in a catatonic state and absorbs any attempt to utilize your magic to do so…"

Raven nodded again. "I suspect that's what the iron is for."

Nightwing's eyes narrowed. "How is iron going to help? I thought Iron was immune to your magic?"

"It is," Raven acknowledged, gesturing towards Nightwing's utility belt. "It's a similar idea to your stun cuffs. Cover a material in iron, make it immune to my energies."

"So you expect to encase the Helldust in iron…" Nightwing tried following the logic. "To create-" realization hit him then- "a lightning rod for accidental energy releases that can't be damaged by magic."

Raven nodded, still working through the logic and potential ramifications, herself.

"But what about the addictive properties?" Nightwing continued. "I know your demi-, but if that trance is any indication-"

"The Iron will need a few runes to offset any habit-forming effects," Raven agreed, "but so long as there's iron between it and me and the dust isn't exposed to the open air, they should be minimal."

Nightwing nodded, fully intending to supervise Raven and ensure the runes worked the way she hoped- his mentor had instilled a deep distrust of magic in his prodigy… all magic came at a price of some kind.

But there was another problem.

"Where do you plan to keep it?" Nightwing mused. "There aren't many places secure enough for something this dangerous, and you can't keep it anywhere near you- I don't know the range, but if you're anywhere within a certain distance and you need to use your powers-"

"I didn't realize this was his _contingency_," Raven confessed, "so I didn't think to prepare something-"

"-The secret vault, then."

Raven thought for a moment, then nodded. _Now I understand why Nightwing keeps a vault somewhere only he and Batman know about… _"Normally I'd put a few wards around it, as well," she offered, "but the Helldust would just absorb the energies and erase the safeguards. Once it's encased in iron, I should be able store a small amount in a pocket dimension where it won't affect me until I retrieve it."

"How do you intend to open a pocket dimension to put it in if the dust is on this side?"

"There's an Azarathian technique that doesn't utilize demonic magic," Raven furrowed her brow in concentration. "It's unwieldy and slow, but I still remember learning the steps."

Raven thought for a moment as Nightwing looked for another issue with her plan…

Then Raven spoke up.

"There's enough dust there for two objects."

Nightwing's sidelong glance spoke volumes of wariness. "Raven-"

"I want you to make them," Raven rushed through. "A set of restraints for the vault and a smaller object for me… something I can wear- keep secure even when distracted…"

Nightwing nodded slowly. "Should also make it less obvious what it is, keep one of our rogues from trying to use it against you…"

Raven could hear the hesitation in Nightwing's voice.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Raven? I understand wanting more freedom in expressing yourself, but this is dangerous stuff here…"

"I'm sure, Dick," Raven used Nightwing's preferred "real name" rarely, and only to emphasize her certainty. "And I need it by tomorrow."

She could feel the shock roll of her leader at that. "Raven, that's quick, even with our facilities… I'll have to quarantine a workshop, prep the equipment, make a couple molds… it would be easier with Cy-"

"-No," Raven interrupted. "Cyborg's memory is perfect, if his files are compromised even for a second one of our enemies could have total access to my greatest weakness…"

Nightwing nodded. "I figured you'd say that… Does it have to be tomorrow?"

Raven's brow peaked in dry sarcastic surprise. "Am I cutting into your primping time for the Formal?"

"Actually, I was wondering if that had something to do with your sudden urgency," Nightwing's sly voice suggested that he already knew that was the case.

Raven went for the easy excuse.

"I'm not looking forward to a room full of tipsy civilians incessantly asking about my last… incident," Raven hedged, looking away. "Having a method to catch wayward energy surges would be… comforting."

"Ah," something about the blue-clad vigilante's tone suggested he didn't believe her excuse in the slightest, but was willing to humor her. "Of course. Wouldn't want to put any civilians in harms way on accident…"

Raven waited until her blush faded before turning back to face Nightwing. "Precisely."

Nightwing just tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Well, I suppose I could be done by tomorrow morning, give you time to test it before the formal…"

"Thank you," Raven turned to leave…

"But you know," Nightwing called after her, "there's something I need you to do in the meantime-"

Raven felt dread sink into her stomach at the way his voice trailed off… "And that would be?"

"I promised Star I'd take her to the mall for shoes for tomorrow," Nightwing practically sang. "If I'm going to be working on this, someone needs to keep her busy…"

_Garfield, _Raven thought as she nodded in resignation, making her way down the stairwell, _had better appreciate what I'm going through to make this happen… _

A little voice inside her couldn't help but add to the thought…

_And make it worth it…_

* * *

Raven turned the corner to her room and stopped mid-stride in surprise.

There, standing in front of her door, hand raised to knock, was Changeling…

Holding a_ cactus_…

* * *

"Can I help you?"

Despite himself, Changeling jumped and nearly dropped his Opuntia Rhodantha.

He whirled, only barely aware enough not to end up with a handful of cactus spikes.

"Hey, Rae, I- uh- didn't realize you we out already…"

"Clearly."

"So yeah, uh, I just thought I'd drop by and, well,"

"Changeling."

"Yeah?"

"Why do you have a cactus?"

In truth, Raven was on the edge of cracking a grin, but she held the semi-disinterested monotone as best she could while watching a clearly off-guard shapeshifter desperately trying to regain his composure.

_This ought to be good…_

* * *

_"Why do you have a cactus?"_

Suddenly, everything Changeling had rehearsed flew out the window, and he was left holding what now felt like a massive, potted mistake…

_Oh well, _he cringed, _no way to back out now…_

"It's, uh- it's for you," he grinned his best lopsided smile, offering the potted desert plant with two hands, despite Raven being much too far away to actually accept the gift.

He watched anxiously as Raven approached down the corridor. _Has the hallway always been this long? _

"You got me a cactus." Only Raven could express a question with so much indredulity...

"Yep!" Changeling forced enthusiasm to offset his nervousness. "I was going to go for roses, but, well, I thought this made more sense…"

"Nothing about you makes sense," Raven quipped, but Changeling grinned at the complete lack of bite to the observation. _If that's not an invitation, I don't know what is…_

"No, it totally does! See, cacti are really misunderstood," Changeling ventured. "I mean, everybody sees the spikes and kinda runs the other way, right, but cacti are awesome…"

Raven was halfway down the corridor, and Changeling could have sworn the hallway AC was broken…

"Cacti thrive in some of the most barren places on Earth. They're super effective at storing water for droughts, their fruit can sometimes be the only edible thing for miles, their nectar is super nutritious, and they're hugely important in their ecosystem."

Changeling caught Raven's peaked eyebrow, and it encouraged him to keep going even faster.

"Seriously, there are animals like the cactus wren that don't live anywhere except in cactus. To humans, cactus spines can be used for stitches, or for food and water, and they heal from incredible damage- you can actually grow a whole cactus from a piece you break off an old one."

Raven was standing in front of the shapeshifter now, and Changeling was particularly satisfied with how her gaze actually lingered on the plant in his hands… _Here goes nothing…_

"I guess what made think of you, though," Changeling did his best to keep his tone casual… "Is that while cacti do perfectly fine on their own, if you look past their defenses…"

He turned the plant to reveal a deep purple flower on one end...

"They're uniquely beautiful."

* * *

Raven's eyes popped wide open and she froze…

_Did he really just…._

The veritable circus of emotions in her gut assured her that yes, Changeling did fact just compare her to a cactus…

And she wanted to kiss him for it.

But Changeling wasn't done.

* * *

When Raven froze, one finger a hair's breadth from the aforementioned flower, Changeling knew he needed to act quickly.

"So, Rae, I know it's technically required and the whole team's going and all, but… would you like to go to the Mayor's Charity Ball... You know... _with me?_"

* * *

Starfire was enjoying a slow start to her morning.

She slept in about an hour later than was her custom, and had only begun giving her beloved Silkie his morning scratches when a loud and persistent banging echoed from her doorway.

_Surel__y boyfriend Nightwing is not so eager to venture to the mall of shopping before sufficient intake of the Jo, _Starfire cocked her head and floated to her door, still in her bright pink silk pajamas.

The door was barely open before Raven was in her room and the door was slamming with black psychic force.

"Friend Raven, what-"

"I need a dress."

"Do you not have-"

"No, Starfire," Raven's voice was tense, on the verge of some kind of panic. "I need a _dress._"

The emphasis was not lost on Starfire, though she fought to keep the squeal of excitement from her voice at what it clearly meant. "Friend Raven, please, what is the urgency-"

Raven fell silent, and Starfire could clearly see the conflict between her normal, passive demeanor and her inner turmoil.

Finally, Raven gave in. "Changeling wants to go to the Formal tomorrow…."

Starfire couldn't resist. "But we are already going to-"

"_Together_," Raven forced through clenched teeth, and Starfire could hold back no longer.

* * *

"Star," Raven grunted through clenched teeth and constricted lungs.

"Oh, most WONDROUS!" Starfire squealed as she released her empathic friend. "Did I not predict such an occurrence? Did I not do the knowing, and in this very room? Please, you must tell me everything-"

"Starfire," Raven cut her off, tension and… fear?... in her voice. "I don't have a… I'm not ready…."

Starfire's gaze slid slyly to a large cardboard box half-tucked under the foot of her bed…

"Friend Raven…." Starfire grinned, "Do you remember our discussion regarding the players of cauz?"

* * *

Cyborg was having a weird day.

First there was Raven and the video thing... _still no clue what that was about._

Then, Nightwing kicked him out of his workshop in the garage, claiming some "high priority assignment" that he wouldn't discuss...

And now, Changeling was _singing? _

Now, normally the half-metal young man wouldn't have taken note of that last one- the resident shapeshifter was nothing if not enigmatic- but this was different...

Changeling was singing in _Swahili._

_Malaika, __nakupenda __ Malaika. _

_Malaika, nakupenda Malaika._  
_Nami nifanyeje, kijana mwenzio,_

Changeling was distracted, tending to something cooking on the stovetop, and Cyborg was fairly certain the green animorph didn't realize he'd entered the room.

Cyborgs translation software kicked in, and a second later text was scrolling through his heads-up display:

_Angel, I love you Angel._  
_Angel, I love you Angel._  
_And me, what should I do, my love?_

Cyborg grinned, torn between needling his friend for the sappy lyrics and listening to Changeling continue...

_Little bird, I always dream of you, little bird,_  
_Little bird, I always dream of you, little bird,_  
_And me, what should I do, my love?_

Cyborg's eye softened, and he resolved not to disrupt the moment. _Good to see the guy finally find someone worth his heart, _Victor smiled as he watched his friend hum some complex rhythm probably only half-remembered.

He turned and made his way towards the front door, careful to keep his footsteps light.

As the door slid closed behind him, Cyborg filed the memory in his personal files, one he didn't add to often, but referenced before he fell asleep and often while he dreamed.

The folder was simply labeled: Family Memories.

* * *

Okay, long-time readers may recognize that the Cactus bit was not an original… There's an excellent story published back in 2012 by Caprichoso called Opuntia Rhodantha that does the same concept so well I couldn't help but borrow it. Of course, theirs goes much deeper into it than I do (it's a one-shot that sees BB ask Rae out for the first time without 25 chapters of set-up) so it's very much worth a read if you haven't seen it before.

The song I found through google, so no guarantees as to its authenticity or location-accuracy for Changeling's canon upbringing... I just really liked the lyrics.

As always, Read and review- it was only the excellent feedback and encouragement for the FF readers like you that inspired this chapter (at the expense of my schoolwork) so quickly.


	27. Chapter 27- Preparations

A/N: *gingerly raises head from the abyss I'd fallen into…* hehe, hey, my beautiful readers… happy labor day?

Yeah, I know it's been so long you'll probably need to read back to remember what's happened in the story… sorry about that. Haven't had time to write (obviously) but I renew my promise that this story will not die without a proper and finite conclusion! It's happening people, and I'm getting closer and closer to resolving it in my head and on paper!

That being said, there is a little bit I didn't go into full-depth in this chapter: on is Raven VS make-up inexperience. If you want a better description of Raven's "consultant" and her emotional response to being "girlified," LamontCranston's "Love in Shades of Green and Grey" chapter 19 includes a much more thorough description than I'm going in to- mostly because it's anecdotal to the story I want to tell. It's not exactly copy-paste: in my story, Raven's older and more self-confident, Lamont stays a little closer to Raven's potential emotional insecurities (it's much earlier in the storyline for him, too), but still a good read if you're looking for more in that respect.

There's also a pretty massive tie-in to my other multi-chap that basically nobody's read at the end- the kind of twist that kind of changes the way you see a major character… I suspect some people will hate it, but personally I love it, so I'm anxious to hear what you have to say!

As always, Read and Review, and enjoy!

-TwistedPremise

* * *

The day- and the next- flew by for Raven.

Literally.

First, there was the near-light-speed flight Starfire literally dragged her through the air to no fewer than four high-end boutique shops in search of the perfect shoes for them both their dresses.

Between shops two and three there was the flight to a jewelry store to resolve a stand-off between police and a pair of would-be robbers.

After finally satisfying Starfire with a pair of elegant but understated matte silver heels that only made her feel _slightly_ unstable, and could easily by discarded in an emergency, Raven convinced Starfire to fly back to the tower for lunch- where Raven was able to slip away briefly to check in with Nightwing regarding the status of his new project.

Or rather, she tried to get an update, but Nightwing was being suspiciously close-lipped about the whole thing… and she wasn't sure she liked the tight grin on his face when he refused to let her see the design.

She intended to meditate then, but Starfire _insisted _on "running the looks dry" to check whether the custom uniform- Raven refused to call it a dress- required hemming or emergency alterations.

Raven was relieved to see that the scan and dimensions Starfire had apparently sent her designer were reliable: the dress fit perfectly, and Raven actually found herself holding her chin a little higher, her shoulders further back than normal as she studied her reflection.

Apparently, Mrs. Mode (that was the name on the card in the box) had decided that silver suited the nighttime nature of the formal, and Raven was amazed to see her normal gold belt interpreted with such delicacy and grace. The linked matte silver complemented the deep blue and the silver clasps on her shoulders and detached sleeves- not gloves, since they ended at her wrists- held the shoulder-less elements in place and glinted like stars in motion.

Even the fabric was mesmerizing. The deep blue seemed to shimmer in indirect light on the outside and absorb light on the inside- and while it looked thick and rich, Raven found she was able to move and react without resistance. Soft as velvet, light as silk, but strong as she dared test it, Raven wondered whether the designer might have some magic talents to have produced such an impossible cloth.

It was perfect.

At least: that's what Raven thought, before Starfire gasped in indignation…

And then the two girls were flying _back_ to the mainland, dresses in hand, to Starfire's preferred "consultant of fashion and cosmetics" for accessories.

A two-hour tutorial on how to complement her unique skin tone with a light blush and specific strokes of eyeliner* was interrupted by _another _flight to the same jewelry store from earlier where _another_ band of criminals was attempting to take advantage of the already-busted windows and disabled security system to make off with a sizeable haul.

Starfire's fury made short work of the would-be felon's resolve, and the young women were back at the consultancy for accessories- something Raven couldn't remember ever shopping for in her life.

The process was frustrating, so say the least. Raven's covered wrists automatically ruled out any form of bracelet, and Raven refused most jewelry on principle: it was functionless and gaudy, expensive and easily damaged or (for necklaces) dangerous in battle. She didn't even have her ears pierced. Raven had been willing to purchase shoes and make-up from her modest endorsement savings, but the high-price baubles on display were well outside her spending range, and she outright refused to let Starfire purchase such an extravagant item for her.

Sighing defeat, Starfire left the shop with an elegant gold necklace, but just as the girls were set to fly back to the tower for dinner inspiration shone in the Tamerannean's eyes and Raven cautiously followed behind her friend to…

The jewelry store where they'd just thwarted two robberies?

Raven settled on the sidewalk beside her friend just inside the yellow-taped police boundary. The windows were boarded up, but through the glass door they could see the owner talking with a police officer, going over a clipboard- likely confirming his inventory was fully accounted for.

The owner caught sight of them over the officer's shoulder, and eyes instantly went wide as he rushed to open the door for them.

"Miss Starfire, Miss Raven, welcome! I don't know how I could possibly thank you enough, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't gotten here so quickly, and twice in one day!"

"You are most welcome," Starfire assured him, "we are only pleased that we could prevent anyone from being harmed."

Raven stood behind her alien friend, confused as to why they were here. The Titans rarely returned to the scenes of these types of crimes: only when there was some mystery unresolved did Nightwing risk exposing the team to the risk of contaminating a crime scene or being accused of exploiting their role in the community- one never knew what innocent action could incur a lawsuit these days.

Nonetheless, as Starfire inquired as to the man's well-being, Raven let her gaze wander. The smashed cabinets had not been cleared completely, and atop the glass displays were arrayed the assorted pieces the thieves had tossed haphazardly into their backpacks.

In their rush, the thieves had left a few pieces still on their displays, including a mannequin head that caught Raven's eye. Raven lost track of the conversation as she studied the unique pieces.

More delicate than most of the pieces from the previous store, the slender pendants hung from a minimal silver wire, a near-invisible string which seemed to suspend the feature of the earrings in space: two thin, diamond-shaped deep green gemstones.

Raven watched as the late afternoon light through a crack in the boards seemed not to illuminate, but to sink into the faceted surface, light at the edges with a near-black core, the large planes gradating every shade in between as the slender tapered shape deepened at the center.

So mesmerized by the effect, Raven startled a bit when the shop owner's voice sounded over her shoulder; "I see you have a fondness for green."

Raven stilled as she realized her finger was mere inches from the display. Hastily withdrawing it to the cloak, Raven straightened and turned to face the thin old man. "I- I haven't seen a cut like that before. Not that I shop for jewelry often," she confessed.

The shopkeeper smiled knowingly, a softness in his eyes as he reached forward to lift the base of one earring gently, watching it turn in the light. "You have a fine eye, Miss Raven, but it's not the cut you haven't seen before: it's the gem. This is true green diamond: exceptionally rare, and uniquely beautiful. They can tamper with normal diamonds to imitate the tint, of course, but in my experience nothing compares to the real thing."

_No, it certainly doesn't, _Raven agreed, watching the pendant swing lightly in the display.

"Would you like them?"

Raven startled at the question, turning her head to the old man. "I'm sorry?"

"Your friend over there-" the shopkeeper nodded back to where Starfire was conversing with the police officer, "-was showing me the necklace she got, mentioned you couldn't find something that suited you. From what I can tell from her description, your dress negates any bracelets or necklace, and rings are fine for championships or weddings, but no one wears a ring without a meaning. You need earrings."

Raven shook her head, "I don't wear jewelry."

"Forgive my boldness," the jeweler offered, "but I've never seen you _without_ jewelry."

Raven's eyes narrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Raven resisted the urge to flinch as the man committed a rare crime: violation of her personal space. His thin, delicate hand reached up and gently nudged her hood, causing it to fall back.

He wasn't done yet, though, and Raven consciously held back any reaction as she felt her bangs brushed to one side of her forehead…

…exposing her chakra stone.

The old man stepped back, lowering his hand, apparently satisfied with his point. His gaze rested on the gem Raven knew was part of her, but which she never paid particular attention to.

Raven took a steadying breath. "I hardly see how my chakra qualifies as jewelry. It's not exactly something I can choose to remove… or chose to put on."

"Perhaps not," the gentleman replied, "but it is still a beautiful stone which brings out the color of your eyes."

Raven turned, unsure of how to respond… but flattered that she felt nothing but innocent, professional sincerity from his aura.

He continued, "Just this afternoon I watched you end a firefight by disabling firearms with a thought before the young men even knew you were there. You are a practical and efficient personality, Miss Raven, and as such I suspect you view any unnecessary adornment to be either a hazard or a distraction. Am I correct?"

Raven's only response was a nod, surprised that a jewelry dealer recognized her disinterest so readily.

"And yet, these pieces caught your eye. Now, this tells me that they have some appeal to you which speaks stronger than your usual distaste. I take it your resources are limited?"

Raven blinked, unable to follow his rapid change of inquiry, but he seemed to head her eyes enough to get his answer.

"Then there is no way for you to afford these particular earrings outright. Green Diamond is rare and expensive, and if the thieves had made away with them I doubt even my insurance could have covered my loss. I am willing, however, to offer you a consignment option."

He must have read the confusion in her eyes. "Consignment is effectively a loan. You borrow my piece for 72 hours, wear it to an event or two, and bring it back. I get the advertisement- you are effectively endorsing my piece- and a small rental fee, and I suspect I'll find it much easier to sell that particular piece, and a great many pieces after, for a higher price. After all, who doesn't want to own the piece worn by one of the famous Titans?"

Raven felt her eyes drift back to the display as she processed. The mesmerizing green called to her, and Raven recognized that this made a great deal of sense from the jeweler's perspective… and it offered her access to something she could never afford or justify to herself normally.

She had to tread carefully, though. "What if I don't bring it back?"

The old man smiled. "Then everyone knows who stole it, and I use your deposit to higher Miss Starfire to bring it back for me. But we both know that won't be necessary."

Raven nodded, but had one last reservation. "Earrings are dangerous in my profession."

The old man stared at her, incredulous. "Didn't I just watch you heal a man of a bullet wound this morning? Could you not simply heal yourself if they were ripped out?"

Raven pondered it, acknowledging the logic, even if the scenario did sound unpleasant… she'd certainly endured worse than some ripped earlobes, and even that was unlikely given how quickly they could be removed.

Her eyes again sank deep into the gems… _bright at the edges, deep in the center, _she noted, _and when the light hits it just right, it's exactly like Garfield's eyes…_

"Miss Raven, I would be honored for you to wear earrings from my shop tomorrow. In fact, I insist on it," the shopkeeper presented a clipboard to her, the words **72-Hour Consignment** bold at the top. "Just sign and date here, and I'll give you directions to a young woman who gives the most professional, cleanest piercings in town."

Raven nodded, sensing the sincerity and pride rolling off him as she accepted the pen and pad.

As the girls landed on Titan's Island that evening, Raven turned to her friend and struggled to find the words to thank her friend and unwitting guide in what she was realizing was a much more complicated process than she originally expected-

-but Starfire cut her off.

"Let us meet here at the eight of clock," Starfire's voice was just a little _too _innocently sing-song for Raven's liking.

_Dress, shoes, accessories, make-up, _Raven checked off. _What could possibly be left?_

"We must venture to the salon," Starfire explained. "It will take time to include you at my appointments for hair, nails, and the facial of cucumbers."

* * *

Nightwing chuckled as the small explosion sounded outside the garage.

Then he called up the Titan's bank system and transferred an extra several hundred dollars from his account to Starfire's before focusing back on his nearly-complete project.

_Sounds like Starfire's having fun._

* * *

The same two days crept by slowly for Changeling.

He'd finally realized that Jericho knew everything about his "secret mission" too, and was a much better mission report writer than he was: convincing him to write it for him only took thirty minutes of pestering, fifteen minutes of apologizing profusely to Cole, and a series of bargains that included surrendering two edition #1's and trading Jericho and Cole a week's worth of shifts so they could enjoy Jump City weather while he froze up North.

Apparently gratitude for saving Rose only went so far.

Changeling had made remarkable progress in the gym, too, and was nearly back to his old shape. This reduced his workout mode to shorter, more intense sessions with longer rests in between- again giving him more downtime.

Then the girls managed to solve both alarms for the day before he even made it to the mainland, so entertaining himself by kicking bad-guy butt wasn't available.

Nightwing was dialed in on some project in the garage, and Cyborg was out patrolling and being fitted for a plus-size tuxedo: not something Changeling bothered with, since he could simply grow his tuxedo from scratch.

He did, however, spend a lot of time replaying the scene with the cactus outside Raven's room in his head.

He hadn't been sure what to expect, but suffice it to say that being pressed up against the wall and kissed so hard he got light-headed wasn't his first guess…

…not that he was complaining, of course. He'd barely managed to confirm meeting in the common room at seven-thirty before Raven had disappeared into her room, cactus in hand.

He _really_ needed to sneak into Nevermore and find somebody to thank.

The problem now was how to top himself with the cactus bit…

_We can't just fly to the formal, _changeling mulled, laying upside-down on the couch, long legs draped over the back. _And Cy's taking the T-car. _

_I couldn't ask Vic to chauffeur anyway, _he realized, _how lame would that be? Forcing Cy to third-wheel it like that? _He thumped his head on the floor in frustration. _Why couldn't I be like Nightwing and have money set aside for stuff like this? He rented a car, I should have money for cool date stuff…_

The excuse that he'd never needed money for "cool date stuff" before didn't lessen his frustration any, either.

Changling's communicator chirped, startling him enough that he shifted into a cat to land upright before returning to his natural shape.

The text from Cyborg read simply: _Check your account._

Assuming Cyborg hadn't discovered his secret fanfiction account- _he only used it to monitor his reputation, honest!-_ Changeling logged on to the secure Titan's banking system and immediately noticed what Cyborg meant.

There in his account history was a $250,000 deposit by "Ravager Studios," for "Services Rendered."

_Cy, can you track this?_

The technologically-gifted man's response was simple. _Looks like a valid transaction. Ravager Studios is a legit company, registered with all the right places. Maybe the contract you signed was legit, even if Slade was pulling the strings. _

Changeling blinked at the idea. _I just got paid by a bad guy… SLADE just paid me a quarter of a million dollars, and I used his son against him to __nearly __thwart his plan, turned his daughter against him, and kinda kicked his ass. _

Changeling grinned wickedly.

_And now I'm gonna use his money to take Raven- the girl who __**did **__thwart his plan and kick his ass- on the best date ever._

* * *

Deep in the heart of a small Baltic country, a man stood at the door of a heavy concrete structur,e puffing on a cigar. Slightly overweight and with a thick, heavy mustache, the former general was enjoying his monthly reprieve from the cold confines of his bunker from which he led his army of revolutionaries.

It was the first time in a month he'd seen the sky, and the moon reflected of his signet ring as his cigar neared the end of its life.

The moonlight glinted off another object, as well, though not one he could see.

Deep in the shadows of the jungle surrounding the complex, the man with one eye leveled his sniper sights on the general. The night was still, the man's cigar smoke drifted up lazily, his finger tightened on the trigger…

And the shadow behind him spoke.

"Ravager was too valuable an asset to sacrifice on a suicide mission."

Deathstroke sighed, knowing the shot was lost. It wasn't an impossible range, but it was clear he wasn't going to be given the time or concentration necessary.

The dark night continued. "Even if Ravager had killed Changeling and triggered the Bargain, you had no reason to believe Raven would spare Ravager."

Deathstroke didn't reply, just reached forward to begin dismantling the firearm.

"You never intended to trigger Luthor's Bargain," the voice of Batman continued, "you expected Raven to utilize animals instead."

"You make me sound omniscient." Deathstroke's reply was flippant, betraying nothing.

"You know Raven and demonic magic first-hand more than anyone," Batman countered, "and the Titans better than they know themselves."

"I have you to thank for that," Deathstroke's reply was pointed but congenial, as though discussing sports or abstract philosophy.

The Batman continued, "You've bartered with the afterlife before, you know the rules- and their flexible interpretation- in ways Luthor never considered."

Deathstrok had the collapsible rifle stowed back in its case now as he turned, mask betraying nothing.

"You wanted Ravager to join the Titans," Batman concluded. "They didn't rescue her, you let her go."

**That **merited a response. "Why would I dispose of such a valuable assistant?"

"Because no matter how hard you tried she was never going to be like you."

Silence rang a half-second longer than Deathstroke should have let it.

"Don't project your own failures as a mentor onto me," Deathstroke countered, voice less biting than he intended.

He shouldered his pack, glancing over his shoulder to watch the General disappear into the shadows of his bunker, unassailable for another month at least.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," he turned toward the shadows of the woods, "I have another appointment to keep. Unless you intend to interfere with that one, too."

He was halfway into the shadows when Batman called out. "I know about the Endgame Initiative."

Deathstroke stilled, but his voice betrayed no concern. "Everyone knows about the Endgame Initiative. The Brain was a fool to think he could divide and destroy the Titans with such feeble instruments."

Batman's voice was smug. "Of course. And your meeting with him after his defeat by the joint Titan-Doom Patrol team AND the fact that Jericho found himself with a new association of colleagues after his failure- the same friends Ravager now stands with- and whom you played such a pivotal role in-"

"-Is only another example of the Titan's persistence at being thorns in my side. Perhaps I'll finally bother eliminating them someday when business is slow."

He strode deep into the shadows, his patience for this conversation- and the persistently annoying individual he held it with- exhausted. He heard the faint whir of stealth vehicle arrive to retrieve his counterpart as he settled in for a long jog back to his own transport.

Normally, He'd have had Ravager pick him up once the job was complete: Now he had several miles to go to his vehicle, and another hour and a half drive to the airstrip. Nonetheless, as he settled into a steady jog he felt only satisfaction at her absence.

_My children have a family, _He reflected. _At least I could give them that._

* * *

A/N: Okay, a quick explanation: I have another multi-chap story that I started even before Raven's Howl called "The Slade Contract." It's incomplete because I put it on hiatus when RH became so popular. It occurred to me as I was writing this story that neither one is strictly non-canon, just in different time periods, and that when the stories are combined they could actually enhance each other quite a bit…

So yeah, this was a tie-in to my other story, which I'll probably pick back up once RH is over in a chapter or two. If this intrigued you at all, you can find The Slade Contract on my author page, it should explain anything that didn't make sense with the Batman/Slade confrontation.

Until next chapter, I cherish all reviews and feedback!

-TwistedPremise


	28. First Date

Hello, my precious readers new and old! Yes, it is truly I, TwistedPremise, back to fulfill at least the spirit of my promise: I will finish this story! In the process, you will find: 1. Changeling's origin story (my version) 2. Cyborg's mysterious girlfriend (I guarantee you won't see this one coming, my muse went completely off-the board for 200 with this one). 3. Raven &amp; Changeling's first Date (obviously) and 4. the fact that there's at least two more chapters left to write, one half-finished.

So, if you've never read my story before: welcome! It's been a long time in the making.

If you're returning from so long ago when I last posted: I'm so sorry! Thank you for coming back, it means a lot!

And as always, I live for reviews! They are the thing that keeps me returning &amp; writing, so please leave a comment with your thoughts/critiques. The more detailed, the better!

Disclaimer: As usual, I own nothing related to the Teen Titans and make no money from my writing. No Infringement intended.

P.S. This chapter is dedicated to fellow writer &amp; reviewer TheHiddenGirl. Seriously, go read her one-shots, they're awesome.

-TwistedPremise

* * *

Raven didn't get nervous.

In the past ten years she'd faced more nightmares and ill-intentioned criminals than any known police department- not even counting the legitimate supernatural of her heritage. She'd fought armies of aliens… several times. She even managed to intentionally walk into a kitchen with Starfire's latest pudding sitting open on the counter- a feat none of the male Titans could claim- and she'd always had an experienced and seasoned Bravery to fall back on.

So why was her stomach churning?

Raven stood in front of the full-length mirror in her room desperately trying to keep her breath even.

Behind her in the reflection, her clock ticked rhythmically, drawing her steadily forward through time despite the cold bead of sweat on the back of her neck.

7:27…

Changeling couldn't sit still.

Antsy behavior was nothing new to the green Titan; his animal forms would occasionally demand exercise, pressing out on the surface of his skin as though begging for release. Changeling was known to spontaneously take on extra patrols or- if no patrol was scheduled and the mood struck- to disappear into the waters surrounding the Tower to swim for as much as a full day.

But this was different.

The animals were- for once- silent, but not like they were asleep. No, there wasn't a single ounce of sleep in his mind right now. Every instinct, every eye was wide open, coiled in striking tension- though whether to fight or flee was uncertain. It was like a reverse zoo… every animal in the world in absolute, rapt attention, all staring exclusively at him as he paced tight, endless circles in the common room.

The digital clock on the counter caught his eye for the hundredth time since he'd checked his reflection in the window… two minutes ago.

7:28.

_Azarath Metrion Zinthos… _

Raven released a deep breathe through her nose, shivering as some- not nearly enough- of the tension released. _I should have meditated more… _Raven chastised herself, despite knowing it was impossible. Indeed, the three hours she got that afternoon were more than her daily average, and a minor miracle after Starfire had attempted to fill her entire day with various beautification salons and parlors.

Raven opened her eyes and raked over her image one last time, trying to be content with what she saw. _What if he doesn't like it? _

Raven shook her head, trying to dislodge the kernel of anxiety as she turned towards her door. _No time to second-guess now…_

Her door hissed open, a flash of light went off, and Raven jumped a foot in the air.

"Oh friend Raven, You look most glorious!"

Something cracked in Raven's room as the door hissed behind her and she put a hand on the wall for stability.

_Azarath, metrion, zinthos. Azarath, metrion zinthos…_

Starfire, for her part, caught on quick. "Oh, my apologies, I did not intend to do the startling!"

Raven just shook her head, not trusting herself to speak while her heart returned to a normal beat pattern.

Starfire filled in the silence for her.

" I wished to take a picture before your date with-"

Raven held her hand up, cutting her friend off. _I must really be out of it if I didn't feel Starfire outside my door… _"You know I don't do pictures."

"Which is why I wished to take one now, but your eyes are closed in it. Will you take one with me instead?"

"No."

"You would prefer I follow you to the common room and take your picture with friend Changeling?"

Raven's glare could kill…

Kill anyone but Starfire, that is.

Raven gritted her teeth, knowing a lost battle when she was in it. "Fine."

Starfire's enthusiasm nearly knocked her over both physically and empathically, and Raven braced herself as her alien friend threw her arm around her, held up the camera on some sort of strange stick, and did her best to offer a passable grin as the flash assaulted her eyes.

Starfire checked the picture and squealed happily at the results.

Raven was just relieved one was apparently enough.

"You are meeting friend Changeling in the common room, yes?"

Immediately Raven felt the churning in her stomach return. "Yes."

Starfire must have seen something in her face, because she started giggling. "Oh friend Raven, you need not be worried. You look the most beautiful, and I believe you will have a wonderful time."

Raven couldn't help herself. "What if-"

"No." Starfire's voice was firm, though not harsh. "You will not do the second-guessing. You are perfect, he is waiting for you, and you are now the appropriately amount of tardy. Go take his socks off."

Somehow, that helped ease Raven's apprehension, though not entirely. "It's 'knock' his socks off," Raven corrected absently, steadying herself with a deep breath. "and Thanks."

Raven barely braced herself in time as Starfire pulled her into a hug. "You are most welcome, friend, I wish you both the greatest of evenings and a wonderful batch of bumgorfs. Now, I must meet boyfriend Nightwing in the garage."

Starfire flew down the hall and around the corner so quickly that she was gone before Raven processed: _Wait, Bumgorfs*?_

* * *

Changeling was frantic.

Surely the clock was wrong. _Raven's never late. _

7:32.

He checked his communicator's time: still 7:32.

_Is she okay? Is she sick? Did she change her mind? _

That last thought seemed most likely.

_Was it something I said? No, I haven't said anything since two days ago with the cactus, she's been out with Starfire. Oh crap, that's it. She hates the cactus! Or I should have talked to her yesterday. Or this morning, or-_

Changeling was so distracted with his internal chastising that he didn't notice Raven rise from the floor behind him.

"Garfield."

The changeling jumped about three feet in the air, barely maintaining his balance as he landed and turned. "Raven! Hey, wow, you're here! I mean, of course you're here, why wouldn't you be?"

Raven blinked at the deluge of words and rapidly disappearing emotions before the pieces clicked. She glanced at the digital clock in the kitchen.

She peaked an eyebrow. "Three minutes late and you thought I stood you up?"

_Busted_. Changeling rubbed the back of his neck. "I, well…. Okay, but in my defense, being late is normally my thing. You're always early."

Raven snorted, acknowledging the point. "I ran into Starfire in the hall."

Changeling barked laughter. "Let me guess, she used the 'stick of self-photography'?"

The words were out before she realized what she was saying: "yes, and wished us several bumgorfs."

There was dead silence as Changeling froze, paralyzed.

A flash went off in the doorway.

Raven caught only a wisp of pink as the door slid shut and Starfire disappeared into the hall.

Changeling, however, could hear her squeal of laughter even after the door closed.

He threw his hands up in defeat. "That's it, I give up. Starfire is officially the best prankster in the Tower."

Raven's dry humor resurfaced. "She had competition?"

Changeling's mock pout gave Raven the first chance to really look at him since she arrived.

His tailored black tuxedo fit him perfectly- not that that was surprising, given that he probably grew it himself. What was surprising was his choice of accent colors- his vest and tie were silver, like her clasps and belt, with subtle, midnight-blue crossthread pattern. Silver cufflinks on his white shirt, and an elegant silver wristwatch on a white leather band added a formal elegance distinctly offset by his rogue-ishly untamed hair (in his usual, deliberately-wild way) and pronounced canine tooth.

It was a particular blend of wild-man and gentleman, and it looked _really_ good on him…

* * *

The pause in the conversation might have been awkward, but Changeling didn't notice.

He was too busy trying not to stare at Raven.

Starfire had been more bubbly than usual- which was saying a lot- when she brought him color swatches this morning, and now he understood why.

_She new Raven would be wearing this, _Changeling mused, _and she didn't warn me. _

Somehow, Raven managed to make a completely modest dress both unspeakably elegant and obscenely hot.

The resident demi-demon had always possessed a particularly feminine figure, but the past few years had been especially kind. She didn't possess Starfire's bizzarely thin waistline, or Power Girl's disproportionate bust, but demons- according to lore- traditionally featured enhanced physique over humans and Raven's unmistakable hourglass had always been clear in her form-fitting leotards.

The trick with the leotards, though, was that they were always a thick, protective material. They may have left her arms and legs bare, but with the armor-like body and full coverage of her cloak, Raven gave off a sense of being excessively modest in apparel.

Somehow, that same sense didn't translate to Raven in a dress…

Raven in a dress was, somehow, simultaneously an object deserving of worship on a dais and a present waiting to be unwrapped.

The deep, rich fabric seemed to flow and eddy around her skin in a way Kevlar never could. The allure of her leg flashing from the slits clear up her thigh, the way the hood framed her face, the way the thin silver belt slung over the curve of her hip, the sparkle of… wait…

"Are those earrings?"

Raven instinctively reached up to her ear, fingering the dangling gem just below her left lobe.

"Yes. I noticed them at the jeweler yesterday."

Changeling grinned. "They're green."

Raven ceded nothing. "I hadn't noticed."

Changeling just laughed. "Hey, I get it, it's a good color."

Raven rolled her eyes, but Changeling wasn't done.

"They look really good on you."

If the warmth on her face was any indication, Raven actually blushed.

But Changeling still wasn't done.

"You look beautiful."

It was simple, but when you can physically feel the sincerity behind a compliment it makes it hard to dismiss.

It suddenly felt uncomfortably warm under her hood.

"Thanks," Raven's quiet sincerity matched a soft grin, "You look pretty handsome, yourself. You plan the silver and blue?"

Changeling shrugged. "I had a little help."

"Let me guess," Raven began-

"Starfire" they spoke in unison.

Changeling shook his head. "Somehow, I think Star knew about us before **we** knew about us."

Raven thought back to Starfire's assurances before Changeling's conflict with Rose at the Café and couldn't help but agree.

Changeling's eye caught the clock, and suddenly he jumped, turning to project his elbow in a classic gentleman's pose. "We should get going, the car's outside."

Raven blinked, confused, but accepted the proffered arm as Changeling led to the door. "Cyborg left you the car?"

Changeling just grinned. "Not exactly."

The door to the training grounds hissed open, and a bright flash caused both the Titan's to freeze.

Starfire whisked away on pure mischievous joy, camera clutched to her chest, gone before Raven could do anything but shout after her.

"STARFIRE…"

* * *

With Starfire gone, Raven's attention then turned to the black car languishing on the training grounds.

Or, more precisely, the black stretch limousine and its driver, who was standing by the back door, waiting for them.

Changeling's energy and nervousness conflicted beside her as she regarded him with confusion and bewilderment, but she allowed him to walk her- still arm in arm- up to the vehicle. The black-capped driver smiled politely as she lowered herself into the car and slid across the spacious interior so Changeling could follow her.

The car started, and Raven waited until they were fully engulfed in the tunnel to the mainland before giving into her curiosity. "You rented a limo?"

Changeling rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Too much?"

Raven couldn't decide what to say first, so she settled on the obvious. "How did you afford a limo?"

Changeling's nervousness faded into an eager humor. "Slade bought it."

He must have seen something on her face, because he burst into laughter before launching into an explanation of the contract with "Ravager Studios" and the recent transaction.

Raven just shook her head, enjoying his energy and voice as he recounted the story.

"And you decided to use the money on a limo."

Raven could have kicked herself for the way she sounded, instantly regretting the potentially judgmental undertones of what she only meant to come across as bewilderment.

Changeling, at least, didn't seem phased. He shrugged nonchalantly, "I decided that if he's going to try and make your life hell, it's only appropriate for his money to go towards making your night special."

Raven turned away, caught off-guard by her own blush.

"And besides," Changeling continued, grinning as the car rolled to a stop and another young man in a tuxedo pulled open the door handle. "There was plenty left over."

Raven had been so distracted by the conversation that she hadn't taken note of where their driver was taking them until she stood outside the vehicle.

The large glass doors stood open, a doorman waiting patiently to usher them into the lobby, up a private eletator, and to the top floor of Jump City's highest of high-rises.

Raven followed Changeling's gentle guidance, incredulous. She whispered, certain there'd been a mistake. "Chateau Jump?"

Changeling was clearly enjoying catching her off-guard as he fought to keep a giant grin from splitting his poised, "high class" posture.

Only once the elevator doors closed and they were alone did he break form, beaming at her. "You hungry?"

Raven didn't know how to process this. Chateau Jump was arguably the finest dining in the city- a bona-fide five star establishment that featured absurd prices and an even more extreme waiting list.

There was no menu, just a staff of international chefs who'd prepare anything you requested, guaranteeing that it would be the best version of it you'd ever tasted… or ever will again.

Somehow, they'd even prepared a tameranean dish for Starfire.

Raven considered how to reply… until her stomach let out a vocal response for her.

Changeling laughed. "Yeah, me too. I figured Starfire wouldn't give you time to eat anything today."

The mention of Starfire reminded Raven of something… Chatteau Jump was where Nightwing took Starfire for their one-year relationship anniversary, a date Raven had heard recounted in excruciating detail… several times.

Raven found her voice. "You don't have to compete with Nightwing."

Changeling blanched, and Raven knew she was on to something.

"First the limousine, now Chatteau Jump?"

"That's not-"

A raised brow proved Raven didn't but his denial.

"Okay, okay, there was a little bit of that-"

Raven did her best level glare.

"But really, it's not about them," Changeling reassured. "I just, I don't know… I wanted somewhere nice, someplace special, and I remembered Nightwing talking about how this place was quiet and private and had an awesome view and I just thought that it would be a good fit, you know?"

Raven could feel the anxiety and hopefulness in his tone, feel it roll off of him, and the reasoning made sense. _Not many places the Titans can get out of the public eye these days. _

"Besides," Changeling continued, "I know the manager."

The door hissed open and a giant of a man in a black tuxedo greeted them. His bald head and bronze skin practically glistened, a large silver watch flashing as he threw open his arms. "Garfield, my little troublemaker! So good to see you!" His voice boomed with mirth.

Changeling stepped forward and gave the man a surprisingly informal bear hug. "Chef Euwie, good to see you again! You haven't aged a day!"

"And you still lie like the devil," the chef's eyes crinkled in laughter, evident fondness overriding any potential harshness in his words. His eyes slid over Changeling's shoulder to Raven. "And your manners are as terrible as ever. Introduce me to this goddess you've brought into my establishment before I throw you out and keep her."

Changeling laughed and turned towards her. "Raven, this is Chef Euwie- the man who nearly killed me with a fish. Chef Euwie, this is my date and superior in every way, Raven."

Raven reached out a hand to shake, but the massive chef had other plans. He raised her hand and bent nearly double, placing his lips gently above her knuckles. "Miss Raven, I am honored to have you in my restaurant this evening. If there is anything you require, please do not hesitate to ask. Anyone who can put up with Garfield is a special guest at my table."

Raven shot Changeling a glance and a small grin. "It's not easy, but somebody has to."

The Chef barked laughter and flicked his wrist to a straight-backed Maitre' de. "Indeed, my dear, he's just lucky it's you. Now, I am due back in my kitchen, Garcon here will show you to your table. Please, enjoy your evening, and remember: if you request anything I cannot provide, dessert is free!"

Changeling offered his arm and they followed Garcon though an open dining room, past several open tables, through an archway and into a small alcove-like space with a single table. Beside it, a panoramic view over Jump City displayed the city in all its glory. The setting sun bathed everything from the mountains to the bay- including Titan's Tower, in a warm orange light. Changeling made a point of pulling out Raven's chair, and the waiter departed.

The table felt empty without menus.

The silence that fell was even more so.

Raven opted to break the silence. "You just happen to know the chef at Jump City's nicest restaurant?"

Changeling beamed. "Oh, Chef Euwie? Yeah, that's a funny story, actually. After I… changed… I had a brief career as an actor for this sci-fi series. I was an alien."

"Not much of a stretch," Raven quipped.

"Says the demi-human from another dimension," Changeling retorted, grinning. "Anyway, the series was pretty popular for a season, and Chef Euwie had a small restaurant near the studio. He was our go-to caterer." He paused, reminiscing. "He does incredible things with a halibut."

That reminded Raven of Changeling's introduction of the chef. "I thought he nearly killed you with a halibut."

Changeling's smile grew mischevious. "Yeah, that was after he found me sneaking into his kitchen for thirds… he put a couple habanero peppers in one and looked away."

Raven's eyes bulged as she imagined Changeling's sensitive taste buds responding to a nightmarishly spicy surprise.

Changeling laughed. "Yeah, that was how he got his nickname, too. After I drank so much milk I puked, he asked me how I liked my dinner. My tongue was still numb, so 'eww" came out ' euwie, chef. Euwie."'

Raven snorted, but before the story could continue a thin man with a pencil moustache appeared with a small notepad.

"Good evening and welcome to Chatteau Jump. We are honored to have you here, Mr. Changeling &amp; Miss Raven. My name is Pierre, and I will be servicing your dining experience tonight. Can I get you something to drink, perhaps a sparkling water or glass of wine? "

Changeling deferred to Raven for first response. "Herbal Tea, please."

Pierre nodded, "We have a good many blends available, Miss Raven, perhaps a Japanese Gyokuro, or a Chinese Oolong? We have a fantastic Da Hong Pao."

Raven blinked at the mans casual knowledge of brews, then remembered the restaurant's guarantee and an idea began to form. She shot changeling a small, wry grin. "Actually, I was hoping for a blend from my childhood." She heard Changeling's breathing catch. "I can't quite remember the name, but it was Indian in nature, I think, with notes of hibiscus and a subtle warm spice similar to a chai. Any chance you could find something similar?"

Pierre showed no indication that the ambiguous, specific request was at all unusual. "Absolutely, Miss Raven, I am certain we can find something satisfactory."

He turned to Changeling, who was struggling not to lose composure but managed to order. "A rooibos and a Van der Hum, please."

As Pierred departed, Raven looked at Changeling with surprise. "Alcohol?" It wasn't uncommon the shapeshifter would have a beer or two with Cyborg, but she rarely witnessed him going out of his way for a drink.

"The Van der Hum is," he shrugged. "Rooibos is actually an African tea. It's caught on recently as a health drink, great anti-oxidants."

Raven nodded, and Changeling took the opportunity to inquire. "So, is the tea you asked for some magic potion from another universe, or did you visit India on a field trip between monk classes?"

Raven snorted. "Neither. It's actually an earth tea, rare, borderline impossible to find or brew." She quieted, remembering the history behind the drink. "My mother would brew it whenever I was allowed to visit her. It was one of the few things she managed to bring with her from Earth."

Changeling's gentle aura surged with compassion. "You don't talk about her much. Is she…"

Raven cut him off, understanding the question. "Arella… my mother fled to Azarath once she knew she was pregnant with me. She hoped a society of peace and self-control- one already familiar with Trigon- would counteract his evil. The monks decided it was too dangerous for me to develop a traditional emotional attachment to her. For years, I only knew her as Arella and visited her when she taught me history of Earth, telling me it was important to understand other cultures to better appreciate mine."

Raven had many shades of monotone, and this was her softest. "She was killed when Trigon destroyed Ararath, sometime between my fleeing and my 16th Birthday."

She silence was reflective as Raven felt waves of… empathy?

"My dad drank Van der Hum."

Raven blinked, caught off-guard by Changeling's sudden confession.

"I remember sitting on his knee when he met with- negotiated with- tribe chiefs to study animals in their territory. The chiefs were always anxious about white researchers on their land, but dad always got their permission. I snuck his cup away once during the negotiation and tried it, ended up spitting it all over one of the elders and dropping the cup into the fire."

Raven snorted, noting how many of Changeling's childhood stories began- and ended- with stealing food.

"I don't have many memories from before my transformation, but I'll never forget the way dad laughed. From then on I always had my own cup… just filled with watered-down palm-wine, instead."

Pierre appeared then with their drinks. "A Van der Hum and a rooibos for the gentleman, and herbal tea for the lady." He set the steaming pot and a small cup on the table. "Can I recommend an appetizer or entrée?"

Raven hadn't considered her choice… what did one order from an unlimited menu, anyway?, so she elected for the first thing to come to mind. "I hear good things about the halibut."

Changeling nearly choked on the first sip of his tea.

Pierre, however, was unfazed. "Certainly, ma'am, how would you like that prepared."

Raven grinned. "At the chef's discretion, just nothing especially spicy, please."

"Of course." Pierre nodded, turning to Changeling. "And for you, sir?"

Changeling shot Raven a glare, clearing his throat pointedly, still recovering from nearly sending tea into his sinuses. "Mushroom strudel, please, and can we start with a maki roll and caprese?"

It seemed cross-culture cuisine was no difficulty as Pierre made a few quick notes on his pad. "Absolutely sir, I will take this in right away. Is there anything more I can do for you?"

Raven was about to let Pierre slip away when the smell wafted from the pot in front of her. "Pierre, did the chef tell you the name of this tea?"

"Certainly madam, I believe he called it 'midnight dove.'"

* * *

"Certainly madam, I believe he called it 'midnight dove.'"

The thin man disappeared to take their order to the kitchen as Raven froze, staring at the inauspicious teapot in front of her.

Changeling caught her stillness. "Raven, are you okay?"

Forcing a deep breath, Raven tore her gaze from the off-white porcelain. "Midnight dove. That's what Arella always called her tea… I'd know that smell anywhere, this is the same tea."

Changeling was at a loss for what to say, but she could feel his concern.

Gingerly, Raven forced her hands to reach out and lift the pot, watching the lightly tinted liquid flow to the thin-handled cup. Lifting the cup with both hands, she inhaled the vapors deeply, letting the subtle flavors dance through her memory.

She closed her eyes and saw Arella, her flowing raven hair and soft, knowing eyes as she passed a cup of this same tea to a young Raven.

The image faded as Arella smiled, and Raven opened her eyes to see Changeling studying her with concern.

Raven looked down into the cup, embarrassed by her sudden emotional swell.

She heard a slight clink as Changeling reached for his own glass, looked up to see him raising it towards her in a toast.

He didn't need to say anything to know who they were toasting to… the drinks themselves were the answer.

Raven smiled softly and raised her glass to tap his. He smiled as they both drank, reveling in flavor and memory.

They set the glasses down, and Changeling broke the silence.

"So now I know what to get you for Christmas."

Raven snorted. "Good luck, I've been looking for this tea for years. I thought the recipe was lost, or that there was some Azarathian herb in it Arella didn't tell me about."

Changeling grinned. "Well, you weren't a bloodhound. I've smelled it now, it can't hide from me forever."

Raven just smiled, appreciating the sentiment. "Alright, but I'm not getting you alcohol for Christmas, so I need something else."

Changeling grinned. "A hammock."

"A hammock?"

"Yeah. When we traveled for mom &amp; dad's research, we slept in tents and hammocks because beds were bulky and havens for bugs. I keep meaning to get one, but never got around to it."

"Got it. One hanging net you'll get stuck in and never get out of, coming up."

Changeling laughed, and Raven realized just how little she knew of his pre-Titans history. Sure, she knew there was the Doom Patrol, but this talk of his parents, of the TV show, all that was new…

Raven didn't like not knowing .

_Best to start at the beginning, then. _

"What did your parents research?"

* * *

The conversation flowed surprisingly fluidly from there. Turns out, the green shapeshifter had a lot more backstory than anyone realized: his parents were researchers in central Africa, studying a disease called Sakutia that seemed to jump between species indiscriminately. Garfield became infected, and in attempt to cure him they injected him with a mixture of DNA sequences from individual animals they knew were immune.

After this triggered his color-changing metamorphosis at the age of six, Garfield's first transformation was into a mongoose- instinctively killing a cobra threatening to strike his mother.

The Logans rushed to get back to America, where Garfield could be studied and hopefully cured of these changes safely, but tragedy struck when their boat engine overheated and exploded, sinking the ship. Garfield was the only survivor.

Stowing away on a freighter, young Garfield made his way to Las Angeles, where a family friend recognized him, gave him a place to live, and home-schooled him. When she got a part in "Space Trek 2007," she brought Garfield with her and he played a young, alien ensign.

Then the show was cancelled, his new caretaker broke the news by taking him to a traveling circus, hoping to soften the blow. Instead, Changeling ran away, following the circus and offering to become an act with his transforming.

The circus manager had other plans. Threatening to leave the young boy unless he complied, he ordered Garfield use his shifting to break into places and steal wherever the circus traveled, in addition to being part of the circus' "freak show."

It was there that the Doom patrol noticed Garfield. Rita had insisted the team take a break and attend the festival, and they instantly recognized Garfield as more than an act. Mento's reservations meant nothing in the face of Rita's fury once they discovered what was going on, and Changeling was adopted into the Doom patrol at the ripe age of 8-and-a-half.

He stayed there under Mento's tutelage for six years- during which time the mental and physical changes (and training) triggered more and more of his animal forms and abilities… and side effects.

Apparently, violent video games were an early form of release for the aggressive instincts, even after he was forced to become vegetarian due to his escalating carnal appetite.

Despite the surprisingly traumatic backstory, the conversation never drifted to the realm of pity or depression. It was obvious that Changeling had already come to grips with his past, possibly Rita's influence over those six years.

Over the course of the conversation, the food was delicious, the tea warmed both body and spirit, and Raven contributed stories of her own "vagabond period" after fleeing Azarath- which mostly consisted of Gotham before the accidental unification of the Titans.

Eventually, however, the meal did come to an end, and they were both due at the formal- overdue, actually.

Raven never saw a check- apparently that was handled in advance- though she did see Chef Euwie as he bid them goodnight as she allowed Garfield to lead back to the waiting limousine. What she pretended not to see was how Chef Euwie surreptitiously slipped Changeling a small bag of what looked like loose-leaf tea during their farewells…

Then it was into the limousine and off to Jump City Civic Center, where the massive ballroom would be filled with the cities' VIPs. Business owners, philanthropists, professors, social entrepreneurs, politicians, and- of course- the local heroes all in one place, just begging for a supervillain attack.

And worse, the press.

* * *

Raven watched as the limousine pulled into the drive up to the Civic Center. The line of vehicles had shortened to a trickle now that the party was fully underway- official opening was an hour ago- and the press was in full form.

Raven could see camera flashes bursting at the red carpet leading from the vehicle drop-off to the main doors. It seemed every publication from here to Gotham was hell-bent on documenting exactly who arrived here with whom, what they were wearing, what their opinion was on the latest, most controversial topic (probably Raven's giant black dome), and anything else that could possibly make headlines.

It was everything Raven tended to avoid, all at once.

Changeling seemed to sense her apprehension.

"If you want to teleport inside, you can."

Raven's brow furrowed at his wording.

_'I can,' Not 'we can'?_

Changeling picked up on that, too. "Raven, I know you don't like having your picture taken. I know you don't like answering questions or being made news… I get it, I do. It's hard not to think they're going to find something wrong, something to criticize or judge us for. And God knows we can sometimes be easy targets."

Changeling wasn't talking about superheroes, he was talking about _them_ specifically. Raven and Changeling; the freaks, the weird ones, the ones with a dark side and a less-than glamorous past.

"But Raven, look at me." Raven couldn't help it, green eyes bore into hers with unflinching earnestness. "You are beautiful." His voice was firm, without waver. "Always, on your worst days, you are beautiful. You're beautiful when you're angry, you're beautiful when you're snarky. You're beautiful when you've just taken a punch, and you're especially beautiful when you're dishing them out."

Raven snorted. Changeling grinned.

"You _are_ beautiful, Raven, inside and out. Your past doesn't matter, your parentage doesn't matter, whatever you think you see when you look in the mirror and judge yourself, none of it matters…"

"…Because you're beautiful. You deserve to stand in the spotlight and be seen. Hell, you deserve to be worshiped, I'm just lucky to be standing by your side. And anyone who disagrees with me is both blind and an idiot. I would know, because I am an idiot and even I could see it."

"You have enhanced eyesight."

"I didn't need it."

"Flatterer."

"Worth it."

Raven rolled her eyes, and the limo rolled to a stop.

The press couldn't see who was inside, but Raven could see them, poised to capture and immortalize her imperfections any way they could.

"Last chance to bail out," Changeling offered. "You can do your thing and I'll meet you inside, and that's okay… but I'm going in there the old-fashioned way, and I'd absolutely love to do it _with you_."

* * *

Deep in Nevermore, green wrestled with grey in what had been perhaps the longest-running and most reoccurring conflict the mindscape had ever seen… one which historically favored fear.

But something was different about today. As she stood upon a precipice, slowly being pushed towards a familiar abyss, courage smirked. She locked eyes with her combatant and whispered: "Not today."

Fear had no time to register as Courage side-stepped, revealing Affection standing behind. Fear ran headlong at this new opponent, assured that she could overcome any other force in this battle.

She didn't even feel the blow that knocked her out.

Affection smiled, vindicated after all this time, and nodded to courage. The green avatar bent down and picked fear up about the waist, throwing her over her shoulder.

Courage and Love locked eyes and nodded…

* * *

…As Raven nodded to Garfield.

Their driver reached Changeling's door, opening it and prompting a near-blinding series of flashes.

Changeling turned to step out, but Raven caught his arm. She pressed a quick, warm kiss into his lips, pouring every ounce of affection and gratitude she could into just a few seconds.

Whoops echoed from the front row of camera-men.

Grinning like a loon, Changeling unfolded himself from the vehicle, rising and raising a hand against the lights. His other hand he held out to the shadows of the car.

A blue-gloved hand emerged, grasping his, followed by a silver heel on a long, pale leg.

The camera flashes doubled as Raven's leg was followed by the trail of her dre- uniform- as she rose out of the vehicle to stand beside Changeling.

Instinctively, Garfield brought his hand behind and around her, drawing her tight beside him as they stood for what would undoubtedly be tomorrow's news pictures in the Jump City tabloids. After three seconds- Raven counted- Changeling relaxed his smile and brought his left hand back around to his own hip, projecting the crook of his arm for her. She slid her hand in, gripping perhaps a little tighter than necessary, as they made their way towards the grand double doors.

Reporters called out to them.

-Changeling, what does this mean for your relationship with Miss Wilson-

-Raven, stunning dress, where did you get it?

-Any comment on whether the Titans might join the Justice League?

Changeling froze mid-stride, forcing Raven to stop with him.

Changeling turned slowly to face a young man with a press badge.

"What did you just say?" Changeling's voice was cold, dangerous.

"I, I just asked when-"

"Not you," Changeling glared behind the man's left shoulder. "Her."

The crowd parted to reveal a thin, prim woman in her mid-40's with a badge that listed her employer- a local gossip and slander rag known for it's anti-titan stance. A company owned by another company, owned by another company…

…which was owned by LexCorp.

The woman squared her shoulders, putting on a show of squaring her shoulders and raising her microphone to herself.

"I asked how miss 'Raven' here could expect Jump citizens to sleep at night, knowing she can and will cast a deadly spell over half the city at will and take the lives of anyone she wishes."

All heads pivoted to the two Titans as shocked silence echoed. Not even a camera flashed.

Raven felt the rage pulsing from her date, a cold and hot fury exploding beneath the surface of his skin.

There was no warning. One instant Changeling stood five feet from the outstretched microphone, the next he striking, his emerald fist and black jacket sleeve a blur as he lashed out at the reporter.

His fist froze three inches from her face.

One inch further and he'd have struck the black dome which separated the unfortunate woman from his suddenly icy wrath.

"Jump City doesn't need protection from Raven," Changeling whispered, just loud enough for everyone to hear. "Raven _is_ their protection from everything else. Even if they _really_ don't deserve it."

Changeling jerked himself back and upright, tugging down on his jacket to pull the tuxedo back in place.

He stood to address the cameras. "As we made public before: The dome we all witnessed last week was Raven saving life- not taking it. Slade's bomb required an incredible amount of control to mitigate- Raven did a nearly impossible job of dispersing it and minimizing any collateral damage."

He turned back the jittery reporter, who was clearly missing the absence of a protective shell between her and the shapeshifter.

"Besides, Miss…" He glanced down at her nametag, "Starr, **IF** Raven really did have the ability to take lives at will **AND **somehow managed to refrain from doing so even when Slade or a thousand other villains put her, this team, and everyone in this city in jeopardy…."

Changeling turned and strode back to Raven, putting an arm around her waist as they turned to leave, "It's not ordinary citizens who would have to be concerned."

They nearly reached the doors when Changeling couldn't resist one last barb.

"After all, it's not like they go around insulting and making life hell for those of us trying to make a difference."

* * *

The doors slammed behind them, aided by just a touch of black energy, and Raven glared up at Garfield.

"That was unnecessary."

Changeling didn't even have the decency to blush, though she did feel a slight twinge of guilt in his aura. "I know."

"Entirely uncalled for."

"But she-"

"Makes her living trying to get a rise out of people like us-"

"But-"

"You should have kept walking-"

"I couldn't just-"

"You could have," Raven admonished, "and you should have."

Changeling glanced away, indignant.

Raven took a deep breathe, opting for a softer approach. "You were dangerously close to losing control out there, Gar."

Changeling balked. "What, no! I mean, yeah, I was steamed, but I wasn't going to actually hit her, even if you hadn't stepped in! You saw, I held back!"

Raven sighed. "How did you know I'd do that?"

Changeling grinned. "Well, as much fun as you'd probably have throwing me in jail, you're too good a person to let me really hurt someone like that. Even if they deserved it."

Raven snorted.

Changeling continued: "And now everyone out there sees it too. They're just scared, they needed to remember who their guardian angel is."

Raven glared. "I'm no guardian angel."

"In that dress, Rae, I'd believe you were from heaven."

A black energy bolt to his backside distracted Changeling from her short-lived blush.

Once Changeling re-grew his slightly singed pants, Raven chastised him in a flat monotone.

"I don't need you to fight my battles for me."

For the first time, Changeling expressed true, complete remorse. "I know, I know… you're more than capable of handling your own press… and everything else. I just… I don't like people bad-mouthing you. You don't deserve that."

Raven stepped in and gave the shapeshifter a quick kiss, feeling him relax into it.

"My hero." Raven deadpanned.

Then she slapped him in the back of the head.

"Don't do it again."

Changeling chuckled, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yes ma'am, message received."

"Good," Raven turned, glad to have that situation over with. "Now, are we going in there, or what?"

Changeling's grin nearly split his face as he offered his arm and they made their way through the foyer into the large ballroom.

* * *

It was a grand area, to be sure. An expansive buffet lined the left wall, while a full jazz band filled the stage on the right. Directly across from the entrance were a series of three-story windows and a balcony overlooking Jump City.

As expected, the room was filled with people in their finest attire, several of whom Raven recognized at first glance. _The fire chief, _ she noted, _the Police Captain, Jump University President, owner of the Jumpshots…_

Another familiar face, the mayor, was making his way over to them.

A brief round of formalities ensued: a few introductions the mayor apparently thought were necessary, the mayor's wife gushing over Raven's new uniform, handshakes and what Raven felt were a little _too_ pre-packaged comments about how fortunate the city was to have the Titans.

Mercifully, Changeling handled the brunt of the small talk; complimenting the venue and the Mayor's new education policy. _When did Garfield start paying attention to politics?_ Changeling made a point of excusing them quickly, saying they'd like to look for the rest of the team and check on security for the event.

They hadn't gotten three steps from the Mayor- who'd already found someone else to talk to- when something in the air stilled as Raven felt Changeling tense beside her. "Garfield, what's-"

Changeling's voice was clipped, his eyes narrowed. He whispered, as though to himself. "I know that smell…."

His nostrils twitched once, twice, and his head turned sharply to the buffet. Raven felt herself stumble as he launched into a clipped walk, pulling her towards the end of the spread. More precisely, towards the brown-haired woman in a slim red dress standing there, punch in hand.

The woman's back was turned, but Raven saw her stiffen as they came up behind her.

Changeling spoke first, his voice firm. "I don't know what you think you're doing here, but-

Suddenly, Cyborg was there, his hand on Changeling's shoulder. "Woah, down, man," the tuxedo-clad man placated, "She's cool. She's here with me."

Raven could feel the shock roll off of Changeling as he stared up at his friend. "Cy, dude, she's not what she looks like. She's-"

"Retired." Cyborg countered calmly as the woman in question turned. Raven could see her clearly now- probably late 20's, low 30's, 5' 9", short auburn hair, lithe with a generous hourglass in a one-shoulder red dress, she moved with a natural, controlled fluidity.

She extended her hand to Raven, the only person apparently a stranger in the group. "Miss Raven, it's an honor," she greeted professionally, "Dr. Barbara Ann Minerva, at your service, formerly known as-"

"Cheetah," Changeling finished.

* * *

A/N: Aha! Well, that's all for now, kiddos! So, what do you think? First date too cliche? How about Changeling defending Raven's honor?

Personally, this chapter feels a little plotless in retrospect: I don't like chapters that don't advance any particular storyline. If anything though, this chapter served to highlight the less frequently noted similarities between Beast Boy and Raven and use them to draw them together in a way that will later be necessary... after all, affection has to be deep and meaningful if it's going to boil over at midnight, right?

Anyway, let me know what you thought, I know there was a lot here so feel free to pick your favorite/least favorite part and tell me!

Stay shipping, my friends,

-TwistedPremise

* * *

*Bumgorfs translates to babies or children, and Raven knows this because that's what Starfire calls Silkie. Starfire did that on purpose to mess with Raven, because I think Starfire is awesome when she's trolling under the guise of innocence.


	29. Cheetah's Past(s)

**A/N: **I'm baaaaaack! Okay, this chapter is kind of tangential, (actually, incredibly so) but It gives me a chance to follow through with something next chapter and pairs nicely with the twist from last, so I gave myself some freedom to play with a series of flashbacks focusing on characters I never really got to develop like I wanted to: Cyborg and Changeling. I promise, we'll get back to Gar&amp;Rae soon, in the meantime please enjoy the reason Changeling is hostile to Cyborg's new girlfriend, and why when the muse suggested the Cy-Cheetah pairing, I knew it was perfect!

* * *

**Previously, in Raven's Howl:**

They hadn't gotten three steps from the Mayor- who'd already found someone else to talk to- when something in the air stilled as Raven felt Changeling tense beside her. "Garfield, what's-"

Changeling's voice was clipped, his eyes narrowed. He whispered, as though to himself. "I know that smell…."

His nostrils twitched once, twice, and his head turned sharply to the buffet. Raven felt herself stumble as he launched into a clipped walk, pulling her towards the end of the spread. More precisely, towards the brown-haired woman in a slim red dress standing there, punch in hand.

The woman's back was turned, but Raven saw her stiffen as they came up behind her.

Changeling spoke first, his voice firm. "I don't know what you think you're doing here, but-

Suddenly, Cyborg was there, his hand on Changeling's shoulder. "Woah, down, man," the tuxedo-clad man placated, "She's cool. She's here with me."

Raven could feel the shock roll off of Changeling as he stared up at his friend. "Cy, dude, she's not what she looks like. She's-"

"Retired." Cyborg countered calmly as the woman in question turned. Raven could see her clearly now- probably late 20's, low 30's, 5' 9", lithe with a generous hourglass in a one-shoulder red dress, she moved with a natural, controlled fluidity.

She extended her hand to Raven, the only person apparently a stranger in the group. "Miss Raven, it's an honor," she greeted professionally, "Dr. Barbara Ann Minerva, at your service, formerly known as-"

"Cheetah," Changeling finished.

* * *

**And now, the story continues...  
**

The four froze for a full two seconds before Raven broke the stalemate. Reaching forward, she gripped the offered hand firmly. Instead of shaking it, however, Raven rotated her wrist just enough to expose Dr. Minerva's fingers to the group- specifically, to reveal the blue-and-silver ring on her right hand.

A holo-ring.

All heads turned to Cyborg.

"She's here with you." Changeling echoed Cyborg's earlier assertion. "How?"

Apparently, the gathering had attracted Nightwing's attention, as he and Starfire chose that moment to join them.

Cyborg took a deep breathe. _Well, no time like the present. _"Wing, Star, perfect timing. I was just introducing Changeling and Raven here to my date, Dr. Barbara Minerva."

Nightwing's response was more subdued that expected. "Cheetah," he offered a hand in greeting, "I'd heard your probation was over, didn't know you were in town." His eyes slid to Cyborg. "My sources must be slipping."

She took his hand, smiling. "I've been keeping under that radar, focused on my research for Star Labs."

Starfire addressed the question everyone was wondering. "Please, I do not understand. You are not the Cheetah I have witnessed doing combat with the Wonder Woman?"

Cyborg and his date flinched at that, glancing around to see who might have overheard Starfire's inquiry.

"Okay," Cyborg started, voice low. "Here's the story."

"About two years ago, Nightwing- still the traffic light back then- got a call from Superman. Yeah, THE Superman. Out of the blue."

All heads turned to Nightwing, who picked up the story. "The Justice League had been watching us for a while… specifically, our rehabilitation program." He paused while the team glanced among one another. This was news to everyone it seemed- except Nightwing and Cyborg. "When we first started the program with Jinx, Batman had called me, warned me not to go through with it. He was convinced it was too dangerous, opened us up to spies and sabotage and PR nightmares. Criminals didn't need another avenue to reform, he said, they'd already rejected the ones they had."

Nightwing's voice hardened: obviously the conversation still lingered sourly between the Batman and his former apprentice.

"He told me all we'd get was another Terra. Or worse."

His voice softened as they all remembered the long, intense discussions they'd had over that very topic.

"But when Superman called, I realized the League interest extended beyond Batman. Over the three years we'd had more success than even I had hoped for: Jinx joining the Titans permanently, Kid Wykkyd and See-more going solo as heroes, Gizmo becoming a mostly-honest entrepreneur. Without their support network, Mammoth and Billy Numerous turned themselves in for a traditional prison sentence and are due for release in three years, by all accounts model inmates, same for Mumbo."

Changeling grinned, nudging Raven. "And you called my idea naive."

Nightwing continued. "Superman told me the League was impressed by our success… so impressed that they wanted to start a program of their own like it."

Raven and Changeling both gasped, Starfire stifled a squeal. The League copying a Titan's Initiative? That was monumental, and unheard of. It gave the Titans legitimacy the league barely acknowledged, and this program in particular was especially important to the founding team: so many of them being second-chance cases, themselves. In founding the program, one of the biggest arguments for it was that it distinguished them from the League in a meaningful way. So why hadn't they heard of this before?

Cyborg picked up where Nightwing left off. "I didn't know about any of this until a few months later, just after Changeling took off for the Doom Patrol." He glared at Nightwing in mock animosity. "My communicator buzzed, and suddenly I was talking to the Martian Manhunter, who for some reason knew everything about the rehabilitation contracts I'd drafted, the security systems I'd put in place, even the mentorship optimization algorithms I'd written- we didn't even use those!"

Raven actually glared at Nightwing. "You gave them our field notes, didn't you?"

Nightwing flinched. "Batman would have taken them anyway…"

Cyborg continued before an argument escalated. "Anyway, once I got caught up, Martian Manhunter zapped me up to their Watchtower and explained the difference between their program and ours: our program was public- any villain could apply, and everybody- even the public- knew who was in and how they were doing. The League version was secret. Nobody would apply, they'd hand-pick the criminals they thought had the best odds of reforming, catch them, then offer them a custom path to earning a pardon through research, hero-work, or both.

Nightwing mumbled under his breath. "Gee, I wonder who came up with that idea?"

Cyborg conceded the point. "Apparently, it was the only way they could get Batman on board."

Raven recognized the missing information. "And they were explaining all this to you because…?"

Cyborg scratched the back of his neck. "Because the League wanted me to consult on their first candidate- Cheetah."

All eyes turned to the woman in the red dress. "You have to understand, I never wanted to be a criminal- much less some kind of… _supervillain_. I was a researcher, a scientist. I was working with big cat dna to try and cure diseases: and I was close! My transformation was an accident, I got careless in the lab, it was late at night, I'm not even sure what happened… just an explosion, and I woke up like this. My lab, my research, my looks, all gone in a blink of an eye."

Dr. Minerva's desperate voice gave way to sorrow. "The government wanted to use me as a test subject, to replicate my change- use it to make soldiers…"

Cyborg's hand rested on the thin woman's shoulder as her voice and gaze returned from a painful place of memory. "So I ran. I took every scrap of research I could salvage and I ran. I found a laboratory going out of business… I knew I could cure myself if I could just buy their equipment! I'd gotten used to living at night, my new abilities made stealth second nature, so I reasoned that if I could just steal enough money to buy the lab I could cure myself and license the research to pay back what I took."

A deep sigh escaped her. "But it was never enough. I stole enough to buy the equipment, then I needed a facility. I stole to buy a warehouse and convert it to a lab, then I needed chemicals, utilities, more specialized equipment. It never ended, only escalated. I stole more and more, resorting to stealing gems and antiques to sell and fund my research. Eventually I attracted the attention of other criminals who would hire me to steal for them, Wonder Woman and the League tried to stop me, and the rest is history."

There was silence in the circle as the party buzzed around them. Eventually, Cyborg spoke up. "The League called me in to be the front-man for her case. They had a tip where to find her, wanted me to make the approach like I did with Kid Wykkyd."

Cheetah chuckled. "Well, not exactly like Kid Wykkyd."

Cyborg's eye shot open. "You said you deleted-"

"I lied," she challenged with a grin. "What are you going to do, arrest me?"

Raven remembered something then. About a month after Changeling left, she'd been headed to the gym when she passed the infirmary. The door had been cracked, and she'd gotten a glimpse of Cyborg taping a cut above a shining black eye- his human one, one of his few remaining vulnerable points. She healed it for him, of course, but his explanation of an accident in the garage had seemed a little rushed…

Cyborg coughed, regaining his composure and shooting his companion a sideways glance that suggested the conversation wasn't over. "Anyway, after she was convinced I wasn't there to hurt her, we got to talking…"

* * *

**Flashback: In a factory in Downtown Steel City.**

Cyborg woke with a splitting headache.

The room was dark, too dark to see… anything. _Wait, something's not- of course._ There was a black hood over his face, pulled tight with a drawstring around his neck, if the faint wisps around his remaining skin were any indication.

He attempted to reach up and remove it, but his wrists were bound… and bound well, if the slight clink of metal were any indication.

_Okay, nothing I haven't seen before, _Cyborg reasoned to himself. _I just need to activate the distress beacon in my communicator and the team will be here in minutes…_

As he prepared to issue the distress signal (thank God that's integrated and doesn't require hands) a voice called out to him from what sounded like a large room, if the echoes were any indication.

"If capturing me was your audition for the league, I wouldn't expect an invitation any time soon."

The feminine voice was at once both dismissive and sultry, and it brought back the memories of what Cyborg assumed was only this morning, when he'd been beamed to a run-down industrial neighborhood in search of Cheetah's most recent hideout. He'd been close before tripping some kind of security feature, which had brought something hard and heavy down on his head. He could feel a black eye forming already.

_Well, I guess I found it. _ Cyborg thought wryly. _Might as well see if I can salvage this…_

Cyborg projected his voice with all the nonchalance he could muster. "Audition for the league? You've got it backwards, they called me because they need my help."

"Oh dear, are the League running out of damsels to save?"

Cyborg couldn't help it… He laughed.

"Something funny to you?" His captor certainly didn't seem to think so, as Cyborg felt some kind of metal band constrict around his midsection.

Cyborg coughed. "Sorry, your banter is just so much better than my normal bad guys'."

"Oh?," the voice was suddenly right in front of him. There was what felt like a sharp knife point pressing into the skin under and behind his jaw. Her voice was sharp to match, with more than a little huskiness. "You think of me as a bad girl?"

Cyborg gulped, feeling the muscles flex under the sharp point. "Actually, no, I don't. That's why I'm here."

The hood was ripped from his face, and Cyborg could see that what he thought was a knife was in fact a claw, and he got his first look at the young woman called Cheetah.

He forced his eyes to hers: bright green and icy sharp as the point on his neck threatened to break skin. "And just why is a Titan trying to find my lab?"

_Here goes nothing. _"Because I know what it's like."

If his head hadn't been restrained, the slap would have spun his head halfway around.

"You think you can talk your way out of this? Batman pulled that crap on me once already, got me kicked out of a team with that 'I see past the villain' shtick. I don't fall for the same trick twice."

Cheetah turned and walked away, content to dismiss the conversation- and Cyborg- completely.

"Batman doesn't know what the hell he's talking about." _I really hope this never gets back to him_, Cyborg flinched internally at the thought, even as his tone echoed with a hint of anger.

Cheetah turned to appraise the young man with a raised brow as he continued. "I read his profile on you, his field notes from when he duped you. He's an ass. He goes out and finds everybody's past, then instead of looking for a way to help he focuses on how to manipulate and use them."

Cheetah was listening now, a smirk on her lips with a hip cocked, arms folded across her chest.

"He knows all about us: about our backstories and how we became what we are…" Cyborg's jaw was firm, his human eye distant. "But he doesn't know what it feels like to wake up one day and be a freak."

Cyborg wasn't watching Cheetah, but she was certainly watching him.

"He doesn't know how it turns your life inside out, to lose everything you ever took for granted. To watch the horror and pity on your friend's faces and know that you'll never be the same in their eyes. He can take off his mask and go to the grocery store, he doesn't understand that for some of us the mask never comes off. What it feels like when people cross the street when they see you coming, how alienating it is when you can't turn it off. When you didn't chose this, but now it defines you, and you'd give anything to go back and just feel… normal again."

The silence rang out, heavy with honesty long repressed and rarely acknowledged.

"I was an accident, too." Cyborg and Cheetah appraised each other as he continued. "I didn't ask for this, my dad did this to me to save my life… For a long time, I wished he hadn't."

Cheetah surprised them both with her response. "What changed?"

_Here goes nothing. _"I got what I wanted." A shimmer surrounded Cyborg, a fog of dancing light too bright to see through. When it dissipated, Cyborg- the half-metal hero- was gone. In his place was a man- muscled like a boxer and dressed in athletic wear, the bald African-American was the exact picture of what Cyborg would be without his circuitry.

Cheetah was in shock- approaching the bound man with one hand raised. "How is this-"

"Hard light projection," Victor Stone offered, his voice unchanged. "Tech I reverse-engineered from one of our old villains, Dr. Light. Basically, it's a tangible hologram. Not good enough to replicate the texture of skin, unfortunately, but not bad for an eye-test. Go ahead."

This last comment- an invitation- was all the cat-woman needed. Her hand explored the fake outline of his jawbone, drifting down over his chest to press on the faux pectoral.

The light dissipated, and her hand met cold steel as she looked up at him in confusion. "Why…?"

"Because it wasn't really me." He offered softly, almost sadly. "When I got the tech tuned right, I went back to Steel City, signed up for walk-on tryouts for the pro football team. I spent a week being normal, living my dream of being a pro athlete, almost convinced myself I was…" His voice tapered off.

"But it was never quite right. I woke up one morning and just thought: why am I doing this? I'd put so much effort into becoming who I used to be, and once I was… all I wanted was to be recognized for who I'd become… who- and what- I am."

Cheetah couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You can just- be go back again- whenever you want, and you just… don't?"

"Sometimes I do," Cyborg answered. "When I'm off-duty, occasionally, I'll go to a movie or a game and use it to blend in, avoid causing a scene. I'll use it for reconnaissance sometimes, used it to join a gang once."

The look she gave him was of such incredulity he couldn't help but chuckle. "I guess… Once I finally got the chance to be normal again, I realized that wasn't what I wanted anymore. I'd become somebody else, I was just too busy trying to go back to realize it."

Cheetah didn't have a response, so she settled for looking at her reflection in the silver of his chestplate.

"I'd like to give you that same opportunity."

Her head snapped back up, wariness- and a warning- in her eyes.

"This tech, the hologram… It's not just for me. I've built it into a ring you could wear, look like anything, anyone you want. I'll give it to you, if you'll just hear me out."

You had to give Cheetah credit, she rebounded quickly. The hand on his chest morphed into sharp claws on his cheek. "I don't think you're in any position to bargain here, handsome."

_Well, it's a step up from "damsel". _ "Maybe not, but since I'm offering you a full pardon- with the League's backing- and a chance to go out in public without people running for their lives, so I think I'll go ahead and bargain anyway."

That got her attention. "The League doesn't _do_ 'pardons'" she countered.

"They didn't," Cyborg corrected, "but the Titans do, and even the League can see the writing on the wall: catching criminals isn't working, they need to try something new. Why do you think they sent me?"

"Hmm…." Cheetah mused, idly dropping to all fours and slinking back towards a table covered in chemicals of unknown nature. "The Justice League offering me a pardon… what do they want stolen?"

"Nothing."

"Intel, then. They want to know someone's location."

"Not that either."

"Ten years in solitary with good behavior?"

"No prison sentence."

"Don't tell me all I have to do is let you go?" she mocked, rising back on her hind legs and sashaying towards him, a strange metal hook in hand.

Cyborg fought not to lose his cool. "Actually, that's pretty much it. That, and a three-year work program with a research firm of the league's choosing. You'd consult on League business, primarily assessing and counteracting biological threats. You'd be given protection, anonymity, and strict supervision, of course."

Cheetah was right up in his face now, the metal object held idly up between them. Her voice, however, was almost teasingly casual. "Microchip under my skin?"

Cyborg tried not to blanch. "Daily check-ins, maybe a tracking anklet…"

A sudden snarl broke his façade. "Okay, no anklet! I was told that was optional, anyway…"

The snarl settled to a satisfied hum…. _A purr? _

"I assume I'll have a handler?"

Cyborg gulped, a sudden change in demeanor was almost never a good sign- and the sly edge to her voice made him wary….

"I wouldn't call it a handler, really… I think they're calling it a supervisor…"

"Very well, then," Cheetah grinned, thrusting the metal hook somewhere behind Cyborg's head. He flinched, but felt nothing… just heard a click as it slid into place. _It's a key, _the Titan realized with near palpable relief. _Just a key, she's just letting me go…_

"I accept," Cheetah purred with a wild grin, "on one condition."

"I'll do my best," Cyborg promised.

The way she licked her lips, Cyborg could have sworn he was watching an actual Cheetah eying a wounded gazelle. "You have to be my handler."

* * *

Cyborg finished recounting the story and the collected Titans turned to Cheetah.

"Of course, my original plan was to steal the holo-ring and run, of course." She admitted, not an ounce of meekness in the confession. "It was like Christmas..." she turned and mock-punched Cyborg then. "For all of 18 hours."

Cyborg laughed. "Hawkgirl thought I was crazy not to go chasing you." He turned to the Titan's. "She lasted a whole four days before she gave in and came back to get the ring recharged."

The woman in the red dress scowled. "I tried everything to get that ring recharged… every ally, every resource I had, nobody could figure out how to power it. But I'd tasted normalcy… not having to run after looking over your shoulder every day for years…"

Her voice tapered off before returning full-force. "I was addicted."

* * *

**Flashback again.  
**

The automatic doors hissed open, and Cyborg entered the garage with an armload of equipment, heads-up display active with a call from the Watchtower.

"I understand, sir, but it's only been four days, I'm certain that-"

He sighed, setting the tools down on his workbench. "I understand you've got Batman asking-"

He stiffened, "No, there's no need to inform Batman about the ring yet."

A pause. "I understand. I'll let you know as soon as I hear from her."

The line cut off, and Cyborg sighed.

He didn't even get a chance to turn before she struck.

The snarl was his only warning, and it wasn't nearly enough.

Pinned against the wall by a clawed hand around his neck, Cyborg cancelled the automatically charging arm-cannon. _Really need to work on those proximity sensors…_

Cheetah snarled in his face, eyes enraged. "You cut off the ring."

Cyborg just grinned. "You know, if you lost my number, you could have just asked your boss at work, you didn't have to break into the tower for your daily check-in. That probably explains why you're three days overdue…"

The tightening claws assured him his sarcasm was unappreciated.

Cyborg stared his attacker down, calmly. "I take it you've discovered the great limitation of my holo-ring?"

Cheetah nearly spat the words back at him. "You didn't tell me the battery was limited."

"You didn't tell me you planned to run away with it," Cyborg countered.

Cheetah's jaw clenched, and she thrust her free hand into his face. "Recharge it."

Cyborg gingerly reached up and held his hand flat, allowing Cheetah to drop it into his palm. A small hatch opened in his shoulder into which he deposited the ring.

The hatch closed, and Cheetah pushed off of him with a huff, turning to stalk across the garage.

Cyborg took the chance to recover his stance, rolled his shoulders, and retrieved a few tools from the pile he'd just deposited.

"How long?"

Cyborg grinned. "To recharge? About two hours."

Cheetah paced, manic with energy.

Cyborg lowered himself onto a sled and slid under the t-car.

"So, where'd you go first?"

His ratcheting paused, but he received no reply.

_Fine, we'll play it that way. _The ratcheting resumed, and Cyborg set in to wait. The oil was due for a change, anyway.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, a furry tail swished beside him as Cheetah stood next to the car, resolutely looking away.

"Metro City Science Museum."

Cheetah couldn't see him, so Cyborg allowed himself a grin.

_Works every time, _he thought, _Cheetah may be a patient hunter, but I trained on Raven… 30 minutes is nothing. _

Still, he was careful to give no indication of doing anything different under the hood as he spoke. "Yeah? Why there?"

There was a pause as Cheetah considered her answer. "It was somewhere I'd never been before, less likely you'd expect it. Minimal chance of being recognized."

Cyborg recognized a cover-up answer when he heard it. A quick google search told him what he needed to know.

"Nothing to do with the new research facilities they just opened, I'm sure."

Cheetah's tail stilled for half a second and he knew he'd guessed correctly.

"What'd you take?"

There was a pause. "Nothing."

Cyborg heard the surprise in her voice: she was telling the truth, and the truth was still unbelievable to her.

"I used the rings for reconnaissance, walked the museum in broad daylight." Her voice was distant, her mind in the moment. "It was incredible… nobody ran, nobody looked at me twice, I was completely… normal."

There was a pause and the atmosphere shifted. When she spoke again, there was a frown in her voice. "But something was… off."

Cyborg stopped his ratcheting but did not reply.

"I couldn't tell what it was at first, just that I didn't feel… balanced. I wasn't stumbling or anything, but I felt… sluggish. It wasn't until I took the ring off that I figured it out..."

Her tail twitched in his view, then rose out of sight from below the car.

"What does the ring do to my tail?"

Cyborg blinked, caught off guard by the question. Sure, he knew the answer, but he'd never considered what it might mean to her.

"The ring is connected to your nervous system," Cyborg began. "It has to be, to make the illusion convincing to both you and any outside observer. If there's an extraneous feature, like your tail, that isn't included in the new image it blocks all signals to and from that part of your body and cloaks it."

The silence from above suggested she didn't quite follow.

Cyborg sighed and slid out from under the vehicle. Standing to face her, he activated his shoulder-mounted radar dish, allowing it to project out from his shoulder.

Then he activated his "Vincent Stone" hologram.

Cheetah's eyes opened wide as she watched his electronic systems disappear beneath a thin veneer of flesh… and the electronic dish on his shoulder disappear entirely.

"The dish is still there," Cyborg explained, "but because it's not part of the new look, the ring cloaks it and blocks any signal to and from it. I can't get signal from the dish anymore, it's like it doesn't exist. The ring does the same thing for your tail."

Cheetah was mesmerized by the absence over his shoulder… Cyborg noted she was absently stroking her tail.

"It didn't feel right without it."

Cyborg's observation wasn't a question, or even a guess. It was the same way he felt when his hologram was active… missing his electronic functions was more than strange, it just felt _wrong._

Cheetah stilled, and her tail whipped back to its normal position as she turned away, forcefully stalking away from him.

Cyborg couldn't help but admire the sway of her hips as she did so…

He shook himself, forcing a return to the point at hand. "That's why you felt uncoordinated, you're used to having the extra balance of your tail. Probably missed the padding of your paws and the grip of your claws, too. I'll bet the first thing you did when you took the ring off was take a deep breath, stretch, and scale a building."

Cheetah's head whipped toward him, her eyes wide with surprise and anger. No doubt she felt violated, her innermost thoughts so apparent to a supposed stranger.

Cyborg knew he was right… and that he was walking a thin line.

He deactivated the hologram. "Every time I turn that on, I feel it too. Not the coordination, but I feel… disconnected. I'm used to constant input: UV and infrared from my electronic eye, updates about battery level and system operations, news updates, gps data on my teammates, police blotter feeds, you name it. When I look human… that all goes away."

He steeled himself, shaking his head as he prepared to reveal more to this semi-reformed villain than he'd even discussed with his friends.

"It was a relief at first, and occasionally still is, unplugging like that. But the relief doesn't last, I keep feeling this itch at the back of my mind until I turn it back off. I realized that I prefer it this way… it's comforting, natural now, and I don't like being without it."

There was a moment, right as he finished, that he could swear he saw softness in her eyes… an empathy available to only a select few…

…but as soon as it was there, it was gone again.

Cheetah's eyes narrowed, suspicion evident in her glare, and she turned away again.

She didn't even realize she did it on all fours.

Cyborg nodded and lowered himself back onto the sled, sliding under the hood once more.

_She's not ready for it yet, _he mused, _but she knows the same is true for her. All that's left to do now is wait._

* * *

Cyborg's voice returned to the present as Raven, Nightwing, and Starfire appraised the woman before them with a new perspective….

Changeling's glare, however, remained unchanged.

Cheetah picked up where Cyborg left off. "He was right, unfortunately. I only used the ring four times more before I realized that it was always more of a relief to take it off than to put it on. I'd simply become too comfortable in my own fur."

Starfire cut in. "Then your appearance is only for the public?"

Dr. Minerva smiled, unphased. "Well, I did manage to build an unfortunate reputation for myself, this is certainly easier than trying to explain myself to every police officer and vigilante who isn't in the know."

She shot Cyborg a sideways glance, then, a wry, sneaky smile creeping on her features. "I never wear the ring in private anymore, and trust me, I'll be taking it off as soon as possible."

Cyborg coughed as Nighwing's mask raised on one side- his version of a raised eyebrow.

Cyborg cut off any inquiries. "Woah, hey, would you look at the time? I'm supposed to go chat with the city's emergency response coordinator, we'll catch up with you guys later."

Cyborg turned, his arm around his date, intending to take them both as far away from this conversation as the room would allow him, but a sharp-tipped green hand caught his shoulder.

"Cy, would you mind if I had a word with Miss Minerva, please? She and I have something we need to talk about."

Changeling's tone was polite, but only barely. His voice was firm, cold, and it was clear to everyone that this was not so much a request as a thinly veiled demand.

Caught off guard, Cyborg looked to his date for confirmation.

Her slight, knowing nod was reassurance enough. He strode off with only a slight hesitation, leaving the rest of the team to their conversation.

Starfire, bless her, was adept enough to know when to excuse herself…

Or maybe she just really wanted to dance.

Either way, she whisked Nightwing away by his elbow and they took up center-floor position in a waltz.

That just left Raven standing with a green animorph and a holographically-cloaked half-animal, unsure how to respond. From Changeling she could feel waves of focused resentment, from Cheetah she felt only apprehension.

Changeling motioned towards the patio, offering a more private venue, and Cheetah led towards the double door.

Raven followed Changeling, silently concerned. _Changeling's never mentioned Cheetah before, _ she reflected. _What's going on here?_

* * *

** One Year Three Months Ago…**

It was crazy how familiar it felt to be working with the Doom Patrol again.

Or rather, half the Doom Patrol.

The past five months had been both familiar and strange. Since the Brain and Mallah had been put on ice, Negative Man had taken time to pursue meditation in the orient, hoping to finally reconcile his two components and restore his scarred body.

Robotman had taken a position with Cord Industries robotics, updating his systems and developing new technologies for modern superheroes. He still worked as an on-call researcher and consultant, but he rarely stepped into the field.

Rita and Mento, however, were still active in the heroics scene. Carrying on the name of the Doom Patrol, they traveled around the world taking on strange or developing cases, pursuing the ever-elusive General Immortus and the several villains who sought to take advantage of the Brain's now-unguarded resources.

Changeling had spent the past five months with them, using the more relaxed pace to train with Mento and understand himself better.

And occasionally, he'd end up on mission like this one.

Several universities and research institutions in Central America were reporting missing equipment, and local environmental organizations had been issuing warnings that local wildlife were inexplicably missing.

It wasn't enough to get the Justice League's attention yet, but this was exactly the kind of mission Changeling was suited for, and on the off chance that these two factors were related Steve, Rita, and Changeling took off for the jungles of Central America.

It didn't take long for Changeling to pick up a foreign scent trail.

Changeling crouched low in leopard form, trusting his natural green hue and indigenous patterning to keep him concealed as he studied the clearing at the end of the trail. Across the clearing, barely noticeable in the shadows of the trees and mountainous terrain was a cave- the destination of his search.

Still breathing heavy from an hour of continuous tracking, following the scent trail through the dense jungles, Changeling studied the scent itself. _Strange, _he mused, _Organic, with a chemical overlay. Definitely fur, maybe feline?_

As the shadows lengthened from the rapidly setting sun, movement in the deep shade of the cave caught changeling's eye. Slowly, something crawled out of the cave on all fours.

Changeling's eyes narrowed. _That's not a normal animal. _It was difficult to see in the dusk across this distance, but something was different about its walk, the shape of its head, the way it carried itself…. He could have sworn the proportions were human, but it was too… Feline in poise, and its shading looked spotted…

Either way, the combination of its scent trail and figure gave him the distinct impression it was a She.

Changeling reverted to human form- staying crouched low- and reached up to key his com, keeping his voice low. "Mento, possible suspect sighted. Looks like some kind of human-animal hybrid, maybe genetic manipulation. Feline, female."

His mentor's voice came back. "Copy Changeling, hold position. Do not engage, I repeat, do not engage. Eta 55 minutes."

The figure had reached the edge of the clearing on the far side from Changeling and disappeared into the evening shadows.

Changeling took a deep breath, steeling courage not for what he was about to do, but what he was about to say… and to whom.

"Negative, Mento. Suspect clear, I'm moving in to investigate."

Mento's protests disappeared as Garfield switched off his communicator and shifted into a local wren, darting for the entrance to the cave.

Once inside, the darkness was complete so Changeling opted for the form of a fruit bat and navigated the complex path through stalactites and uneven terrain.

Ten minutes later, his sensitive ears told him he'd reached his destination.

Reverting to human form, Changeling held in rage as he surveyed the room.

A roughly circular cavern held a series of stainless steel tables in the center, all covered with high-tech equipment and a dizzying array of unknown chemicals. There were a few laptops, two lamps running on car batteries, several microscopes, and devices who's purpose Changeling could only guess at.

Then there were the ones he understood clearly: the muzzles, the needles, the bags of blood.

All of this, however, Changeling observed only in passing. His focus wasn't on what resided in the center of the room but what ringed the perimeter of it:

Cages.

Metal cages of every size formed a semi-circular chain around the cavern. Dozens of them, some stacked atop each other, and within each one was a cat of some kind.

Jaguars, leopards, ocelots, even an occasional housecat filled the cages. Changeling recognized non-indigenous species like panthers and snow leopards, even a lioness.

Empty bowls rested beside the cages, no hint of either moisture or nourishment.

Only a few of the roughly three dozen animals bothered to look up at the new intruder in their space. Most were unsightly thin, a few appeared sick.

Changeling's sharp eyes picked up on scabs and scars on their hindquarters- these animal had been sedated, and more than once.

So absolute, so blinding was changeling's horror and rage that he didn't even notice the figure behind him until it was too late.

A hissing growl was his only warning before a metal chair struck him in the back of the head.

His vision blurred, but Changeling managed to hold onto consciousness as he fell, rolling onto his back to stare up at his attacker- the figure he'd observed slinking out of the cave.

_Definitely right about the human-cat thing_, Changeling decided, noting that she now stood on two legs as she bared pointed teeth at him.

Her scent hit him then, and the mysterious animal base beneath the chemical taint was clear: _Definitely feline, _Changeling decided, _if that's not cheetah, I'll spend thanksgiving as a turkey._

A thought occurred to him then. _She's the one behind this. If I don't stop her, she'll disappear before Mento and Rita get here. _

Despite the ache in his head, Changeling grinned. _Let's see how she reacts to someone her own species…_

The Cat-Lady gripped the chair, weighing whether to make a run for it or spend the effort on a second blow, when suddenly the green man in front of her was replaced with a green Cheetah, on its feet and growling.

Her eyes widened in surprise for only a half second, but he intended to take advantage of the opening.

Changeling leaped, knocking her weapon from her grip and sending her to the floor.

He turned to face her in preparation for another strike, but what he saw in her eyes gave him pause.

The prior anger had disappeared, even as she circled him on all fours. There was no fear, either, only a steely, intelligent determination.

The two circled each other, waiting for an opening.

She found hers first.

The animals had taken notice of the conflict, and a few had begun calling to them… to Changeling specifically. Distracted by their cries of distress, he lost track of his footing on the stone floor.

His slight stumble gave her the chance to pounce, front paw swiping at his face and forcing him back.

A flurry of blows followed, both angling to gain the upper hand, Changeling on the losing end.

She scored small scratches on his left forearm and right leg, while he managed to tear out a patch of fur on her side.

_This isn't working,_ Changeling decided, _and I can't keep her fighting at this rate long enough for Mento and Rita to get here. Time to play the species game._

It was a conflict as old as time, as old as brothers and sisters squabbling, as instinctive as cat-and-mouse…

It was cats &amp; dogs.

His opponent feinted left, then ducked behind a stalagmite, angling for a surprise attack.

It would have worked, too.

She'd climbed the stalagmite, intending to round it at the top and jump down at him from above.

But instead, a green wolf jumped at her- having picked up her scent- and knocked her into one of the laboratory tables, spilling the contents across the floor.

She recovered quickly, but Changeling pressed his advantage, leaping at her, angling to pin her beneath his greater size and weight.

He had her trapped beneath him and shifted to a silverback gorilla. He pinned her arms and legs each in his massive, prehensile hands and feet, securing her. He settled in for a long wait as she thrashed, trying to break free, bite him, anything…

But Changeling had forgotten to be mindful of his surroundings, and a sharp pinch in his hindquarters was his doom…

As Garfield slumped to the side, already shifting back to "default", the last thing he saw was a swaying, spotted tail….

…holding a now-empty syringe.

Changeling groaned into consciousness, head throbbing. He could feel the rough stone on his face: he was face-down in the now-dark cavern.

A blinding shaft of light hit him in the face, causing him to pinch his eyes closed and turn his head.

"Garfield, are you okay?"

_Rita, _Changeling registered, rising to his hands and knees.

That was a mistake.

Rita rubbed his back soothingly as he vomited the contents of today's breakfast and lunch all over the cavern floor… and on himself.

When he'd finished emptying his stomach and regained his voice, Changeling checked for vital injuries.

_Headache_, he noted, reaching up to feel the back of his head gingerly. _Bruising, but no break or major blood loss. Nausea, but that always happens when I've been sedated. Some throbbing in my right arm, some cuts, nothing serious. _

A less glaring light- Mento had found the lamp and car battery, apparently- flooded the room, and Changeling took stock of the cavern while Rita turned off her glaring headlamp.

The place was a mess. In their battle, two of the tables had overturned, spilling equipment and chemicals all over the floor. Half the cages had been ripped open- likely as a distraction while his adversary escaped, and Changeling could see several big cats hiding in the shadows, watching them warily.

Changeling himself was returning from involuntary sedation, covered in his own vomit and clearly the worse for a battle.

"Okay, let's be honest," Changeling offered. "This is not the worst scenario you've found me in."

Rita almost grinned- Changeling could see her try not to show her relief- but Mento was less forgiving.

"I specifically told you not to engage."

Changeling winced at the all-too-familiar harshness of his tone.

"I didn't think I was," he explained. "I saw her leave and I thought I could slip in and study the base in advance."

Mento stilled, his anger immediately replaced by a cool, professional tone… with a hint of fear?

"She?"

Changeling blinked, trying to focus past the throbbing in his head, still on his hands and knees. "Yeah, she. She got the drop on me, we fought, I had her trapped before she tranq'd me with her tail."

"Tail?"

"Yeah, she had a tail. She smelled like a cheetah, looked like one too, but definitely human first. I think she's got a fascination with big cats."

Before he could register, Rita pulled him up by his collar and pulled his arms out to his side, prompting another dizzy wave.

"Woah, hey, What are you-"

Rita cut him off. "The woman you saw: just under six foot, spotted fur, switched between biped and quadruped?"

Changeling blinked. "Yeah, exactly. Why, do you know her?"

Mento replied as Rita continued studying him intently. "When you provided the initial description I sent it along to Cliff. He found only one person who matches that description: a League villain named Cheetah."

Changeling blanched. _A league villain? I just wrestled with a League villain?_

Mento continued, voice firm. "She's a biologist- a brilliant genetic scientist with an obsession over big cats. Reportedly, she'll do anything to cure herself and look human again…."

Rita froze, staring at the crook of his right arm. She motioned for her husband to join her.

Garfield looked down to see what all the fuss was about and immediately understood what had them so worried.

He was still scabbing from a small hole directly above his vein.

Mento continued: "And now she has a sample of your blood."

* * *

A/N: Oh dear! This can't be good... what would a brilliant biologist want with Changeling's DNA? Actually, what _wouldn't _a brilliant criminal biologist want with Changeling's DNA? Hehehe, find out next time, on Raven's Howl!

P.S. Please leave a review! What do you think, too irrelevant to the main action? Enjoy a little look into Changeling's history? Think Changeling should have won the fight? Like my interpretation of the holo-rings and why people like Cyborg and Cheetah wouldn't choose to live with them all the time? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Oh, and Happy New Year!

-TwistedPremise


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